


All At Once

by AcidNightmare



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Enemies to Lovers, Happy Ending, M/M, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-02
Updated: 2019-09-06
Packaged: 2020-10-05 19:43:25
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 48,005
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20494238
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AcidNightmare/pseuds/AcidNightmare
Summary: When Loqi arrives in Lestallum looking for refuge and redemption, there are immediate suspicions about his motives. To earn the trust of his former enemies and earn a place in their city, he must impress none other than The Immortal.To Loqi’s surprise, proving himself means traveling with Cor on a demanding two week long trip around Lucis, where his ability to survive will be tested by demons and Cor alike.





	1. Chapter 1

Loqi couldn’t help the vague distaste he felt as he finally laid eyes on Lestallum. The city certainly hadn’t improved since the last time he’d been there, and the hastily constructed gate and fences made from cars and junk and whatever else the citizens could scramble together left him less than impressed. The city reeked of desperation, but at this point Loqi didn’t believe he’d find a better place to weather the coming storm. Loqi felt a lingering aversion to approaching this city as he was, but after four days of fighting through the wild on his own to make it here; he was left with little choice when it came to refuge. 

Loqi took a breath as he stepped out from the shadows into the artificial light of the city, approaching the closed gate. It didn’t take long for him to be noticed, the gate raising and a group of three men escorting Loqi inside the gate and up the main thoroughfare of the city. Loqi was led to the city’s square, dozens of people bustling around the heart of the city and Loqi was a bit distracted as he was directed to a young brunette woman and an older man seated at desks and talking amongst themselves.

The young woman looked up at Loqi, smiling sweetly, her entire attention on him.

“Welcome to Lestallum. I’m Iris.” She looked over Loqi, at the state of his clothes and the mess four days of traveling and fighting had left on his skin. “You look like you’ve had some rough travel, but you’re safe here.”

Loqi looked between Iris and the older man Loqi recognized from his debriefings on Crownsguard members. His eyes were narrowed and it looked as though the gears were already turning in his head and Loqi thought not for the first time that coming to the city was a colossal mistake.

The man stared down at Loqi over the rim of his glasses and asked his name, his voice carefully neutral.

“Loqi Tummelt.” He answered, not missing the dawning apprehension that dropped like a veil over the man’s face.

“I see, please excuse me for a moment.” And then the man was off, Loqi was sure to tell the powers that be that an Empire dog was begging at their door. Loqi once would have been too ashamed to ask for help from the Lucians but now he had seen what the world was like for people on their own. After escaping ground zero and traveling for four days on foot without supplies or companions, Loqi’s pride had taken a backseat to the need to survive.

Iris watched the other man leave curiously, but still gave Loqi a pleasant smile. “So how did you get here?”

“An airship dropped me off on the coast.” And Iris’ smile faltered for a moment, perhaps realizing that Loqi wasn’t exactly a run-of-the-mill refugee. But then she recovered, looking up at him thoughtfully.

“You know, I’ve always wanted to ride in an airship. I can only imagine the view.” Iris looked like she wanted to say more, but was interrupted by the older man from before returning with four uniformed Kingsglaive members, tall and looming easily over Loqi.

“If you wouldn’t mind coming with us, Mr. Tummelt, we have some questions.”

Loqi sighed and nodded his assent, expecting as much.

The interrogation had taken the better half of the night; Loqi had told them about the state of Gralea, how as bad as it was in Lucis, the Empire was worse, crumbling beneath a wave of demons flooding through the land. Loqi was upfront about the fact that he had left to save his own skin and that he had no alternative motives. Loqi knew the man didn’t believe him, but Loqi had willingly surrendered his weapon, his phone, and had consented to a search, so he hoped that went a ways to proving he was telling the truth.

At dawn Loqi was released back into the city, a member of the Kingsglaive leading him to the refugee section of the city. The woman opened the gate and directed him inside, giving him one last hard look and a promise that they’d be keeping an eye on him. Loqi nodded and the gate was shut in his face.

…

After only three days in the city Loqi was already at his wits end. Between the constant surveillance, the bustle of strangers, and the mind-numbing boredom, he’d been spending far too much time in his head planning on how to steal as many supplies as possible and jump the fence to escape. Even the almost certain death waiting outside was beginning to sound like the better option in comparison to being caged in the city. His only respite was that he’d finally been recognized as ex-Empire and beyond the persistent dirty looks and the occasional whisper behind his back; most of the city dwellers now avoided him. 

The solitude suited him better, but it still didn’t solve the problem of him slowly rotting away forgotten in some dirty corner of the city. He needed to get out, but preferably with permission and the opportunity to come back. Loqi was impulsive, but he also knew that in this dark new world he couldn’t survive completely on his own, he needed a safety net he could fall back into.

And then the solution crashed into his brain, so plain and simple it pissed him off that he hadn’t considered it earlier. There was already a group of hunters that did exactly that. Men and women who rode out at dusk and returned at daybreak, sometimes with food, or meteor shards, or treasures pilfered from dead demons. They had access to the city but many chose to stay out in the wild weeks at a time, camping and killing and returning at their own discretion. Lying in his cot at night Loqi had heard the excited whispers throughout the camp whenever a group would depart and twice already he had heard the soft murmurs when a group would return a few members short.

It was the perfect solution and since Loqi didn’t know how much longer he could stand the heat and the stench of the city, he set out to find someone he could convince to put his idea into motion.

Loqi slipped through the gate and picked his way through the wreckage idly pushed to the sides of the streets. He hadn’t spent any time in this part of Lestallum since he had first arrived, but during the daylight hours the gates between the sections were left open and boredom had Loqi wandering wherever he could. He vaguely remembered the layout of the city from his brief visit during the Assassin festival, but new gates had been built and old alleyways had been sealed, leaving his memory unreliable. Luckily most of the important parts of the city had been centralized, the city square housing the arms dealer, several shopping stalls, and the Crownsguard command center. The latter was what piqued Loqi’s interest, and he couldn’t shake the idea that it was his ticket out of the tedium of the refugee camp.

Loqi waited until a group of glaives turned from the desk and the woman leaning over it, walking past him laughing and talking amongst themselves. Loqi approached, waiting until the woman noticed and looked up at him. He recognized her from a dossier on the members of the Crownsguard he’d read in the academy. She recognized him as well as a veil of concern clouded over her face, but she straightened up and regarded Loqi curiously.

“Can I help you?”

“I have a proposition for you.” Loqi thought it best to cut right to the chase with this woman. There was a reason she was held in high regard among the Crownsguard and Loqi didn’t want his chances of getting what he wanted extinguished simply because he underestimated her.

She gave him a surprised little laugh. “I’m not sure you’re in any position to be propositioning anyone.”

“Maybe not, but I think it would benefit us both if you heard me out.”

She crossed her arms and tilted her head toward him. “I’m listening.”

“I want out of the city to fight demons. I know you have groups that you send out specifically for that purpose. There’s no reason to treat me like one of the children or old people in the camps. I belong out there.”

“Join the Hunters? I’m not so sure about that.” Monica had a sweet voice but it was deceptive, lulling people into a false sense of security. “To be perfectly honest no one here trusts you. You’re allowed within the city because we have principles and refuse to turn away those seeking help. But to arm you and let you have full access to and from the city? That’s asking too much.”

Loqi wanted to roll his eyes and tell her all the reasons she was wrong; avoiding arguments had never been his forte and she was being just condescending enough to get under Loqi’s skin. It took all his willpower to bite back a retort to her that’d probably get his ass literally kicked out of the city.

“I’m useless to you wandering around with the rest of the refugees. I’m more than capable of killing my share of demons. I overheard just yesterday that you lost two hunters to a naga up near the Vesperpool. With people dropping like flies, you can’t afford to be picky about your help. Especially when it’s someone who knows these things like I do. Besides, what’s the worst that could happen anyway? A demon kills me and you’re rid of one less headache. This is an easy choice for you.” 

Monica looked less than impressed by his appeal, giving him a heavy-lidded stare. 

“You’re not going to brow-beat me into making any decisions right now, I’ll have you know.” She gave him a quick once over, years of experience behind her eyes as she openly judged him. “I see that at least you’re serious. I’ll have to discuss it with the Marshall first, though. Just don’t hold your breath.”

Loqi held up his hands in supplication to placate her. “I’m just asking for an opportunity.”

Monica hummed her assent and turned back to the desk overflowing with maps and papers. Loqi was being dismissed and he didn’t want to tempt fate by annoying her further with his presence. 

A few paces away and Monica’s words sunk in further. He let out an irritated sigh; of course it would be Cor Leonis determining his fate. 

Their paths had intersected countless times throughout their history, beginning at Loqi’s debut in the war after his graduation and leading up to a sound defeat only months ago to the Prince, Cor at his side. All the meetings in between Cor had managed to edge out Loqi in battle, yet never delivering the killing blow. The mercy only drove Loqi mad and Cor had become Loqi’s white whale, his desire to finally defeat the Immortal head on in combat eternally pushing him forward.

Now Cor held Loqi’s future in this city in his hands. That was just Loqi’s luck.

… 

Three nights later and without a single word from either the hunters or Crownsguard had left Loqi on edge and annoyed. He sat at one of the empty tables of the old marketplace, head resting on the tabletop as he stared blankly into the distance. Each day within the city left Loqi feeling more claustrophobic, like the walls were slowly closing in around him and suffocating him.

“So this is where you’ve been hiding.”

Loqi sat up, instantly recognizing the deep timbre of the voice behind him. Twisting in his seat, Loqi faced Cor Leonis, as tall and intimidating and severe as Loqi remembered.

Loqi couldn't keep the sarcasm from his voice as he answered. “I don’t exactly fit in with everyone else.”

“True, that’s why I came to talk to you.” Cor sat down in the seat across from Loqi, folding his arms on the table and leaning forward. “Monica told me of your discussion, that you’d like permission to join the hunters.”

“It just makes sense,” Loqi groused, wondering why this was such a difficult idea for the Lucians to wrap their heads around. “You’ve seen me fight, I’m no slouch. I’m wasted staying in the city.”

“Your skills as a fighter aren’t the issue here; it’s that no one trusts you. The hunters and the Crownsguard work in teams and they watch each other’s backs. It’s a fair assessment right now to say that no one particularly trusts you with their life.”

“If that’s the case why are you even talking to me? Just to rub it in? You might as well just exile me from the city now; I’ll take my chances out there.”

Cor looked at Loqi, blue eyes hard and unimpressed. “If you’d stop being dramatic for a moment I’d tell you I’ve come up with a different idea that I believe would be suitable.”

Loqi frowned but stopped complaining. “Go on then.”

“I have a trip planned in a few days involving some errands and tracking down some demons. Two weeks of travel around Lucis ending up back here at the city. Originally I planned on going alone, but I’m extending an invitation for you to join me. It will give me a chance to assess your skills and see if you’d be an asset to the hunters or just a hindrance. If by the end of the trip I feel I can trust you then you’ll be free to join the hunters with my permission. You just need to prove to me you’ve changed.”

Loqi stared at Cor flatly. The whole thing sounded ridiculous and annoying. Spending two weeks cooped up in a car alone with his former mortal enemy seemed like a bad joke with Loqi as the punchline.

“And this is my only option?”

Cor nodded slowly, looking bored by Loqi’s indecisiveness. “The only one you’re going to get. Take it or leave it.” 

“So I just have to prove myself to you.” Loqi looked straight into Cor’s eyes, flashing a grin broad and false. “No sweat. Actually I think you have the shit end of the stick, is this what the Great Immortal has been reduced to? Glorified babysitter? I see what your fellow Crownsguard think of you now.” Cor gave a snort of laughter in retort as he rolled his eyes.

“If that’s true then what does that make you?”

Loqi’s brow furrowed at seeing the amused look on Cor’s face. He opened his mouth to say something in hopes of picking a fight, but Cor had already stood and turned, waving Loqi in his direction over his shoulder as an afterthought.

“Follow me. You’ll be no use to me unarmed. You’re partial to a lance, right?” Cor was already several paces away, and it took Loqi a second to digest his words. Cor had remembered his weapon of choice despite Loqi using mechs exclusively the past few times they’d met in the field. It wasn’t much, but Loqi had made some sort of impression on Cor. He uncharacteristically decided to let the insult die on his lips and ignore Cor’s brusque manner. At least until after he was properly armed. 

Loqi took hurried steps up until he was back at the Marshall’s side. The city was winding down around them as Cor herded him through the streets to a rugged blonde man surrounded by a variety of weapons. Cor said a few quiet words to the man as Loqi ran his fingers over the variety of spears. The one he chose was sharp, basic but sturdy and able to be upgraded. Cor nodded in agreement and paid before motioning Loqi to the other side of the square where an older man was working diligently on a blade. 

“Nice of you to finally visit,” The old man coughed out, setting aside his work on a pile of similar weapons. “Or is this business?”

Cor nodded, plucking the lance out of Loqi’s grip and handing it over. “Would you work your magic on this? The kid and I will be out in the wild for a couple weeks and I need him to not be completely useless.” 

Loqi spun toward Cor, mouth agape and an angry flush coloring his cheeks. Whatever good will Cor had earned by buying his weapon Loqi promptly forgot as he ramped up to unleash every scathing insult he could think of on the Marshall.

The old man’s cackling laughter interrupted Loqi’s tirade. “Yes I believe I can make this halfway decent for the kid. I’ll need a few days and you’ll owe me one. Sound fair?”

“Of course.” Cor shook the old man’s hand and gave him a farewell salute and they were off again, Cor’s brisk pace leading the way and Loqi unable to do anything but follow.

“So does being a condescending prick come to you naturally or did you have to work to master it?” Loqi was in a foul mood and scowling, arms crossed. 

“That’s how you have to talk to Cid. You’ll learn.”

“Yeah, well that’s not an excuse,” And because Loqi was feeling particularly petulant he added, “And I’m not useless.”

“Prove that to me out there.” Cor gestured vaguely to the walls of the city. They stopped then, and Loqi realized they were at the gate separating the refugees and civilians from the hunters and Crownsguard. 

“I’ll come find you again in a few days. Be ready to leave without much notice.” With that Cor was gone, footsteps retreating back into the heart of the city.

Once again alone, Loqi stared up at the imposing metal fence, an eye sore cobbled together out of necessity. On the other side were crying children, elderly people, and anyone else whose body wasn’t strong enough to stand up to demons. Loqi dreaded the thought of being on the other side and among that many people again, hot and hurried and filthy. Being corralled in with the other refugees had left him anxious and restless; in comparison to that the wide open space and the fresh air of the wild was well worth the risk of demons and death.

Heaving a sigh, Loqi slipped through the gate, the difference between the two sections of the city noticeable immediately. Where the Crownsguard side was serious and organized, this side was chaotic, a mish-mash of people and noise and confusion. The volunteers trying to make sense of the chaos had Loqi’s begrudging respect, but when it came down to it Loqi was counting down the hours until he hopefully would be accepted among the ranks of the hunters. 

Loqi picked his way down an alley to the same building he’d stayed at the night before. It had once been a store selling spices and produce, now emptied as food was tightly rationed. Shelves had been pushed to the side and dismantled, the floor instead covered with cots. There were several other people already sprawled out asleep so Loqi chose a cot in the furthest corner, stowing what few valuables he owned beneath his body and tucking his coat around himself. 

After shifting and adjusting for several uncomfortable moments, Loqi finally laid still, the noise of the surrounding city coming back to him as he settled. He could hear snippets of conversations, some terse, others miserable. There were the sounds of parents comforting their children, and the wailing of those too young to understand why the world had gone upside-down. It was altogether distracting and overwhelming and Loqi pressed the cloth of his jacket to his ears, but the sounds still bled through. With a sigh Loqi accepted it would be another long fitful night of sleep, and despite the fact he was still angry at Cor for earlier, he wanted nothing more than to see him again, get this road trip underway, and get the hell out of here.

…

One week later found them both on the road, camping gear, water, food and weapons packed and a long list of stops to make as they looped back toward Lestallum. To the east a mechanic in Cleigne waited on a delivery of shards, just enough to hold her and her skeleton crew over until normal shipments resumed. Then they would turn south to the Quay to help the hunters there take care of some demon that had been prowling the beach for the past two weeks and had the majority of them spooked. Lastly their trip would bring them along the southern highway and up along the Taelpar Crag, dropping off and refilling supplies at the cabins and camping areas along the way, occasionally the only safety net for refugees fleeing to the city. 

It seemed to Loqi a rather eclectic assortment of errands and he wondered why the highest ranking member left of the Crownsguard was tasked to it. He wondered if it was more an elaborate excuse to leave the city, knowing that if he was in Cor’s position he’d take any opportunity to leave the heat and grime and noise of Lestallum by framing his errands as a mission.

It was bound to be a long trip and Loqi was relaxing in the passenger seat, his boots on the dash and his hands pillowing the back of his head. It was less for comfort and more for the fact he knew Cor hated it, judging by the annoyed sighs he heaved every time Loqi put up his feet. Loqi realized he wouldn’t comment in the open though, and wondered instead if he’d wait for Loqi to get out and scuff at the streaks the boots left. It was childish, but Loqi figured that after years of Cor showing him up in battle and being an all-around nuisance, Loqi would take his wins wherever he could find them. He shifted again in his seat, not missing the sidelong look Cor gave him when the tread of his boot scraped over the lip of the dash, a clump of dirt falling to the floor. Loqi smiled and closed his eyes, turning his face to the window to feel the last bit of warmth of the day.

The sun was already low in the sky, turning the horizon a brilliant gradient of orange, red and purple. Each day was getting shorter, the nights dragging longer and longer and Loqi had the sinking feeling all this was going to get a whole lot worse before it got any better. 

When the sun finally sank below the horizon and Loqi bored of staring out into the darkness he wasted some time fiddling with the dials and controls on the dash. Music wasn’t being aired any longer and the only station he could tune to was a depressing pre-recorded memo aimed at refugees traveling to the city. He’d only been in a car for a few hours with Cor and already this was turning into a disaster.

“I spy something purple.” As he expected, silence was Cor’s answer. “This is boring, the least you can do is play along.”

“I’m not here to entertain you.”

“Then what are you here for?” Loqi countered sarcastically, already annoyed. 

“So I can keep an eye on you.” Cor gave Loqi a pointed look before turning his attention back to the road.

“Well that doesn’t mean you have to give me the cold shoulder. The whole point of this is for you to get a feel for me, right? How you going to do that without talking to me? Maybe get to know each other a little?” Loqi felt like he was whining but realistically this shouldn’t be so difficult. He just wanted some bits of conversation to pass the time, maybe some hints of who Cor really was beneath the stoic veneer and impressive title. So far he’d given up nothing, and If Cor thought Loqi would stay in respectful silence for the next two weeks then he was more of a fool than Loqi had first thought.

“So far all I’ve learned is that once you’re trapped in a car you turn to inane chatter to fill the time. Circumstances brought us together so don’t pretend we’d be companions in any other situation. This trip is for me to judge if you’re capable of being trusted in the field, nothing more.”

Loqi crossed his arms and knit his brows together, green eyes flashing indignantly. He knew he looked like he was pouting, but he’d never been able to completely control his emotions or actions; he ran on impulse and his features had always telescoped exactly what he felt or what he planned to do.

“I’m going to make this into a real unpleasant trip for you if you can’t even pretend to not hate me for a few days.” Loqi spoke through his teeth, hoping he was clear in his meaning, childish pose aside.

“I’m impressed; you made it a whole four hours before threatening me.” 

“You’re kidding. I swear it’s been an eternity in here with you so far.”

Cor made an exasperated noise of agreement, and then after a pause sighed and said Loqi was right. “I don’t hate you, despite what you may think. It’s just difficult for me to see you in a different light yet. But you’re here as proof you want to help Lucis and I need to remember that. So I won’t make any more disparaging remarks about the chatter. Unless necessary.”

Loqi exhaled slowly. Cor was extending a tentative olive branch and Loqi knew he should take it if this trip was going to have a positive outcome for him.

“Okay,” Loqi uncrossed his arms, trying to seem a bit less hostile. “So are you going to take points off for the threat or let it slide since we’ve come to an understanding?”

“You get one.” 

And Loqi could work with that. A couple weeks of trying not to step on Cor’s toes didn’t seem as insurmountable as it had before. He would just need to keep his head down and cut back on the sarcastic remarks. Easy.

…

The first night of camping went about as well as could be expected. After building a suitable fire and laying out their bedrolls they sat opposite one another in almost companionable silence, the occasional snap and pop from the fire the only interruption. Loqi had been trying to keep his comments and observations to a minimum, but Loqi had always been the type to release any thought that crossed his mind into the world for consideration. He figured that as long as Cor wasn’t telling him to stop, that he wasn’t taking it too far.

Loqi stretched and patted at his sleeping bag, considering ending the night early. It was surprising how exhausting it could be just riding in a car and keeping up one-sided conversations, and Loqi yawned tiredly. Just as he laid back, a thundering tear as the ground near their campsite suddenly rent apart nixed the idea of sleep. Loqi stared over as an Iron Giant pulled itself from the glowing purple void, climbing to its feet and resting its greatsword heavily across its shoulders. 

Cor was already standing, katana called to hand and looking at Loqi expectantly.

“What? It’s not going to bother us up here.”

“You realize we’re out here so I can judge your abilities, right? I’d like to see how it is fighting alongside you instead of against you for once.”

Loqi looked up, grinning as he reached for his lance and pulled himself to his feet. “Whatever you say, Marshall.” At that he took off running toward the edge of the rock and vaulted off, lance raised to drive it into the Giant’s flank.

“You don’t get down here you’re going to miss all the action,” Loqi called back as he ducked under a hefty swing from the demon’s sword, stabbing again into the open wound trickling blood down its side. 

Then Cor was at his side, every movement fast and calculated.

“I’m not impressed by reckless bravado.” Cor retorted as he scored a slice into its thigh that had the creature dropping heavily to one knee. Loqi took the opportunity to circle around, plunging the tip of his spear into the back of the demon’s neck; it loosed an otherworldly cry and flailed its sword wildly in response, Loqi having to jump back to avoid being cut in two. 

“Now that’s not what I’ve heard.” And while the Giant was concentrating on swatting Loqi, Cor surged into the creature’s space and carved deep into the muscle and tendons of its sword arm. He cut a gaping wound from shoulder to wrist that caused the demon to drop the immense weapon with a thud that shook the ground. Loqi rushed forward and pushed all of his weight against the staff of his lance, driving the full length of the blade home, the edge bursting out the front of the demon’s throat. It gave a last gurgle and suddenly dropped, its body disintegrating into a puddle of vile goop that seeped into the dirt.

Loqi followed Cor back up to the campsite, setting his lance aside and sprawling tiredly over his bedroll. Cor pulled a cloth from his pack and cleaned the edge of his katana, the weapon disappearing in a flash of blue light when he was satisfied with his work. Loqi watched curiously.

“Is that how you know the Prince is still alive? That you can still tap in to his magic?” 

Cor nodded. “When the Prince’s friends returned from Gralea they said Noctis was pulled into the crystal and they believe he’s now in stasis. He’s still out there, somewhere, perhaps not as he should be, but alive nonetheless. All we can do is wait.” 

Cor settled down in his own sleeping bag, his back to the fire, speaking over his shoulder to Loqi. “Try and get some sleep, we leave at first light.”

…

Loqi stared out the window at the endless view of sand that passed him by. The beige of the desert stretched as far as he could see, the monotony only broken by gorges, jutting rocks, and powerlines towering above. The distance was wavy from the heat, and even without the sun boring down at full strength, after growing up in Gralea, the heat here still made Loqi uncomfortably hot. He had already ditched his jacket and gloves and rolled up his sleeves and couldn’t help but squirm when a bead of sweat ran down the back of his neck. Loqi adjusted the AC vent to blow directly on him and wondered how Cor didn’t even seem fazed.

“I spent some time out here in the compounds but I guess it’s been long enough that I forgot it’s a damn inferno out here. This doesn’t bother you?”

Cor shook his head, listening to Loqi but still looking bored. 

“Well I’m dying. Hope you don’t mind some skin because I’m taking the rest of my clothes off.” Loqi said it as a joke, but at this point it didn’t sound like an awful idea.

“We’ll be there shortly so you might want to rethink taking any more off. Could be difficult to explain your state of dress to the crew there.” Loqi felt his cheeks heat up, a flush of embarrassment and some other unidentifiable feeling crawling up the back of his spine. He rubbed at his neck to distract himself from the thought.

“If that’s the case let’s get a move on before I melt.” 

They only needed to stop once on the last few miles of the trip, a sabretusk chased the car as they passed, a ragged thing mostly skin and bone and desperate. It immediately set upon the car when Cor braked and he climbed out and put the creature out of its misery with two cuts, frowning when he looked closer at the gouges its claws had left along the body of the car. Loqi hadn’t even gotten out, instead watching Cor from the side-view mirror as he ran his fingers over the scratches.

It didn’t take long at all after that to reach Hammerhead. When Cor pulled through the fence and up to the buildings, a blonde woman came out of the garage to greet them, waving, wrench still in hand. 

“Good to see you again Marshall, not often you get to this neck of the woods.” Loqi blinked in surprise at the twang of her accent, wondering if everyone around this area had such a recognizable drawl.

“We have your delivery.” Cor popped the trunk, taking out the crate carefully loaded with shards and hefting it in his arms. “Do you want this in the garage?”

“Yes, thank you kindly.”

Cor left the two of them as he entered the garage. The blonde woman turned to Loqi, fingers cradling her chin as she inspected him. “Now I know just ‘bout everyone who travels through here these days, specially someone with the Marshall, but I don’t think we’ve met.” She stuck out her hand toward him and Loqi could see flecks of grease on her palm and oil under her fingernails. “I’m Cindy. I sorta run this place since my pawpaw is up in the city.” 

Loqi took her hand and shook it, giving her a reassuring smile. “Loqi. Cor’s helping me join up with the hunters, that’s why we’re traveling together.” 

“Ah, I knew it must have been something. Y’know, the head honcho of the hunters is a good friend of mine, if you do me a favor I can put in a good word for you.”

Cor took that moment to return, catching the tail end of the conversation. “Need some help?”

Cindy sighed, crossing her arms and pulling a face. “Yes, I’m about at my wits end ‘cause of these critters. I know Monica and them have bigger fish to fry so I didn’t want to bother her, but these cats have been getting bolder every day.” 

“What’s giving you trouble?”

“A group of coeurls. At first it was just the one, but it must have brought its whole family along for the ride. I don’t like the idea of killing them, I know they’re just trying to escape the demons, too, but they’ve already zapped two of my generators and that’s why we were getting so desperate for shards. I’m worried if they do it again I won’t be able to fix them fast enough ‘fore the lights go out.”

Before Cor could say anything Loqi cut in. “We’ll take care of it.”

Cindy turned to Loqi and gave him an appreciative nod. “Now that’s the hunter spirit, please and thanks, boys.” She pointed off to the north-east where the desert turned rocky, craters and hills dotting the horizon. “They come down from the mountains that way.” As she returned to the garage she turned back, calling out for Cor again and pointing her thumb to the right.

“Friend of yours is over in the station, make sure you say ‘hi’ before you head out.”

Loqi followed Cor as he approached the station where several people milling about the outside looked up and nodded greetings to Cor.

“So who’s your friend?” Loqi asked, standing on his toes to look over Cor’s shoulder as they went inside. When Loqi spied him he instantly knew things weren’t going to go well for him.

Gladiolus stood with a smile and a wave when Cor entered the building, only for his face to fall into an impassive mask when he spied Loqi. Too hot and sweaty to want to deal with an argument or fight this early in the day, Loqi let Cor cross the room on his own, sliding down into a booth near the door, strategically close enough that he could listen in to their conversation.

“What is he doing here? We taking in Empire strays now?” Gladio’s voice was low and heated and Loqi could feel his icy glare on his back. 

“I’m surprised your sister didn’t mention anything. He’s been in the city a couple weeks now. No trouble yet. He’s tagging along so I can see if he’d be a good fit as a hunter; it’d be foolish to turn him away if he’s willing to work with us.”

Gladio scoffed. “How good of a hunter could he be, every time we fought he was hiding in a mech and escaped at the last second. Anything happens he’ll abandon you. You’re going to trust someone like that out there?” 

“Not yet but we’re working on it.” There were a few beats of silence before Gladio gave a sigh of disgust.

“I think it’s a mistake. These Empire pricks destroy the world then come begging for mercy while we pick up the pieces. My mercy would be sending them right back to Gralea.”

“Not your decision, Gladio. He’s with me for now, is that an issue for you?”

Another sigh, this one resigned. “No, I trust your judgement, you know that. Maybe I’m just more cautious these days. I don’t trust him to have your best interest in mind. You know, you lose someone you care about and all the sudden you can’t help but try to prevent losing any more.”

“I understand where you’re coming from, so if you want a front row seat to see what the kid can do we’re hunting down a group of coeurls giving Cindy trouble. It might put your mind at ease and we could always use another sword arm.”

Gladio chuckled “You want my company just ask Cor, don’t need to be cute about it. You know I’m always willing to go where you need me.”

Cor laughed this time and it was low and genuine. “It’s good to see you, too. Get your things around and meet us out front.”

Loqi heard heavy boots scrape the floor and then Gladio was at the door. He still shot Loqi a distasteful sneer, but his irritation had been tempered and he left without saying anything further. A moment later Cor slid into the booth across from Loqi, eyeing Gladio through the window where he was checking over the pack strapped to his motorcycle.

“Well tonight should be fun.” Loqi deadpanned, following Cor’s gaze. “If you couldn’t tell, he’s not my biggest fan, here’s to hoping he doesn’t murder me in my sleep.”

“He wouldn’t,” Cor countered, shaking his head. “And you need to get used to it, there are a lot of people who recognize you and aren’t pleased you’re in Lucis. It’s your job to win them over.”

“Am I winning you over?”

“Well _I_ haven’t murdered you in your sleep yet.” And Loqi rolled his eyes, but he couldn’t hide the small grin turning up his lips, nor did he miss the amusement apparent on Cor’s face.

“Come on then,” And Loqi slid from the booth, turning to wait for Cor by the door. “Seems I need to pull out the big guns to impress you two on this hunt.”

“Can’t wait.”

…

The three tracked the pack of couerls several miles north, following a trail of small carcasses and scorched earth. Loqi knew they were close when they entered a small gorge surrounded by walls of rock and the air around them changed, the smell and tang of ozone thick in the atmosphere. Loqi had been using the staff of his lance to help on the hike and now he spun it, fingers tight on the grip as he looked around warily. The air in the rift was almost grey, charged with enough electricity to make Loqi taste metal on his tongue. Cor and Gladio both summoned their weapons, Cor sleek and dangerous with his blade and Gladio immense and imposing, his claymore almost Loqi’s height.

On the far side of the gorge Loqi could see sharp sparks of lightning through the grey haze, each flash punctuated by a rumbling growl.

“I think they know we’re here.” Loqi whispered, keeping his eyes on the moving points of light encircling them. 

“I count five,” Gladio mumbled, hefting his sword. “Try to concentrate on one at a time.” And then Gladio was stalking forward further into their lair. Loqi looked back and forth between Cor and Gladio before Cor gestured with a tip of his head for Loqi to follow, Cor bringing up the rear. 

There was only a moment of warning before the coeurls attacked, one of the creature letting loose an echoing scream as it pounced. Gladio was ready for the coeurl, swinging his sword in an arc to catch it in the chest, it dropping next to him with a spray of blood and another pained scream.

From that moment on it was a free-for-all; Loqi surrounded by screams echoing off the cliffs, sleek feline bodies darting between him and his companions, and heavy paws batting at the tip of his lance. It was impossible to keep track of Gladio and Cor; he could only hear Gladio’s frustrated yells and the occasional grunt of pain. Cor was silent and only when Loqi spun, his spear jabbed deep in the flank of a coeurl rushing past did he catch sight of him, standing over the body of a coeurl, katana twisted deep in its belly, his arms and face streaked with blood. 

Loqi couldn’t keep him in sight long; he ripped the spear from the creature’s body, its answering growl low and deadly as it rounded on Loqi. Then its antennae sparked, and Loqi barely missed being fried by its lightning, the ground blackened where he’d been standing a heartbeat earlier. Once one coeurl started calling down lightning the rest immediately followed suit and he forgot about attacking as he scrambled to dodge each strike. After one particularly close call Loqi threw himself to the ground, rolling to escape the flash of heat; it brought him next to a coeurl with its head tipped back, whiskers glowing as it prepared to throw its next bolt of lightning. Loqi took the opportunity to thrust his lance through its throat, yanking it out as the thing fell over, screaming and gurgling.

Loqi gave a triumphant laugh and looked over to the last place he’d seen Cor. Loqi’s face fell when he saw him, cornered by two of the felines, both hurt and both angry. Hefting the spear Loqi ran toward Cor and the coeurls and without thinking it through, Loqi hurled his weapon like a javelin, managing to hit the closer cat between the shoulder blades, the tip of the spear wedging deep in its skin. It screamed in confused fury, instantly rounding on Loqi and calling down another round of lightning. Loqi was now weaponless, and with a quick glance to Cor could see that he was favoring his left arm, the leather of his jacket singed black.

“Could use some help over here,” Loqi called in Gladio’s direction, watching as the third cat, bleeding and hissing, managed to dodge several of Gladio’s heavy swings.

“Gimme a minute, I almost had him and this bastard healed himself,” He swung again, catching the coeurl at the elbow and shearing off its foreleg. The coeurl collapsed and screamed in anguish before Gladio dropped the blade of his claymore on its neck, silencing it. When Gladio turned his attention to his companions and the rest of the coeurls, Loqi was still empty-handed, diving out of the way of another blast of lightning and grabbing wildly at the pole protruding from the creature’s neck. It slipped through his fingers as the coeurl twisted and rounded on him, scoring a bite to his shoulder that had Loqi crying out a startled gasp. 

Cor and the other coeurl were both panting and circling each other, the cat’s ears laid back flat and its antennae glowing with unspent magic. Gladio yelled Cor’s name as he rushed the beast, and its eyes darted in Gladio’s direction just long enough for Cor to lunge at its open side, leaving a long cut down its ribs. It lashed out in pain, charging at Gladio and unleashing its pent up lightning. Cor ducked to the side, barely avoiding another hit of electricity, Gladio instead roared in anger as he took the full brunt of the shock, shaking it off and diving toward the coeurl, claymore raised overhead and driving it home, almost cutting the creature fully in half.

Meanwhile Loqi still had not been able to retrieve his lance, the spear digging deeper below the coeurl’s skin, only enraging it further, its attacks becoming wild and desperate. He managed to avoid most of the erratic blasts of lightning, only a throbbing sting to his thigh telling him he hadn’t dodged them all. 

And then Cor was at his side, distracting the angry, dying coeurl. “Circle around and grab your lance.” Loqi nodded his assent, letting Cor divert the beast’s attention enough that he could dive over its back, wrenching the spear free. Loqi rolled to a stop on the ground and twisted to thrust the blade of his lance through the coeurl’s side at the same time Cor’s katana found its mark on the creature’s neck. It gave a last pitiful growl before collapsing into a heap. 

A moment later Gladio rejoined Loqi and Cor, claymore hitched over his shoulder, the Shield unperturbed by the blood dripping off the blade and down his back. He was covered in black streaks, his arms and chest peppered with soot and angry red burns.

“Everyone alright?” Cor asked as he took stock of both his companions, taking a step forward to offer his hand to Loqi. Loqi took it and Cor pulled him to his feet; he then leaned on his lance looking over the mess of gore they’d caused, his nose crinkled in disgust. 

“Guess it’s for the best we took care of these for Cindy.” Gladio mused, rolling his shoulders lazily. “They could’ve done some serious damage.”

“I think they already did.” Loqi picked gingerly at the charred section of his jeans, the hole burned through it showing him the raw pink burn covering his thigh.

“We won’t make it back to Hammerhead before nightfall,” Cor turned to give Gladio an expectant look. “Know where the nearest campground is from here?”

Gladio nodded, gesturing vaguely to the west. “Should be not too far this way if my memory serves me right.” With that Gladio took the lead, heading back the way they came.

Cor gave Loqi an appraising look, lingering on his blackened thigh and making Loqi’s cheeks flush at the attention. “Can you walk on that?”

Loqi scoffed. “Even if I couldn’t you’re not carrying me like that.” And Loqi reached out, cautiously lifting Cor’s forearm up and looking closer at the raw flesh through the scorched leather.

“It’ll be fine. I was just offering a shoulder to lean on.”

“Oh,” And Loqi ducked his face from Cor’s gaze, testing his weight on his thigh before nodding up at him. “I’ll be okay. No worries, Marshall.”

It was past dusk when the three stumbled upon the haven, located more by its tell-tale blue glow than their tracking abilities. Loqi laid out flat and bonelessly on the smooth stone; his thigh was burning and his pant leg was sticky with blood again and he hoped someone else would take it upon themselves to make a fire.

“I wish we’d brought our gear.” Loqi mused tiredly. “Who knew this was going to be an all-night affair.”

As expected, neither Cor nor Gladio answered him and Loqi rolled onto his belly to watch them work, suppressing the hiss of pain when his thigh pressed against the rock. A short time later the fire was strong and bright against the encroaching darkness and the three situated themselves around it, Loqi leaving plenty of space between himself and Gladio.

“How’s your arm?” Gladio turned to Cor, looking expectantly at his left arm where the singed jacket hid the majority of the injury. 

“Its fine, no need to fret.” Cor answered, shrugging off his jacket and setting it to the side. His arm from the elbow down was scattered with oozing red burns, the flesh surrounding them raw and pink. Cor curled his fingers into a fist and released them, making a face when the tendons pulled and moved below his charred skin. “Still useable.”

Gladio looked unimpressed by Cor’s analysis and turned to dig in his pack, pulling out and handing Cor a potion. “Sometimes I wonder how you’ve survived all this time on your own.”

Cor gave the ghost of a smile as he popped the cork and poured half the contents of the vial down his arm. Cor leaned over Loqi then and before he realized what he was doing, Cor had poured the other half over his thigh, the liquid instantly cooling the fire pulsing through his leg as it knit the edges of his wound back together. A single potion wasn’t enough to heal either of their wounds, especially sharing it between them, but it had taken the sting out of the burn and Loqi caught Cor’s eye, mouthing a simple ‘thank you’.

Gladio watched the exchange but decided not to comment on it, instead getting comfortable by the fire, wadding his pack behind his spine to lean against. 

“Y’know, Prom’s going to be jealous Cindy asked you personally for help. Pretty sure he’d walk night and day back to Hammerhead if she’d let him know she was having trouble.”

Loqi watched on as the two reminisced, the nagging feeling of being the third wheel sitting like a rock in his gut. He was being purposely ignored by Gladio, and Cor had given him a one shoulder shrug and an arch of his brow when he noticed, failing to do more than simply continue his conversation. So Loqi sat with a scowl, distracting himself by cleaning his lance and refusing to look too interested in what Gladio or Cor were saying.

“I’m surprised you’re no longer traveling together, I’ve barely seen Ignis or Prompto since we pulled back operations to Lestallum and you’ve been a ghost lately as well, don’t think Iris doesn’t tell me.” 

Gladio looked a little defeated, wrapping his arms around his knees and leaning forward. “Splitting up wasn’t my first choice, but we couldn’t come to a consensus on the best way to help. Prompto thought we should concentrate on finding survivors and bringing refugees back to the city. The group he’s with is all search and rescue and the last I heard they’re out at Ravatogh, evacuating the last civilians out that way. And Ignis,” Gladio trailed off for a moment, biting the inside of his cheek. “Well you know his first priority will always be Noct, so he’s with that scientist Sania doing research. About the royal line, about the royal arms, I guess anything that might give them a clue about how to wake Noct up or at least slow the darkness.” 

Gladio shrugged his shoulders, giving Cor a half smile. “And you know me; my favorite way of solving problems is swinging a sword at them. I thought the best way to protect people was to take down as many demons as possible. I’m just freelancing out here.” 

“Well don’t be a stranger, Iris wants you to start taking her outside of Lestallum; she feels being relegated to seamstress in the city is a punishment.”

“Yeah well she’s all I have left so I hope you haven’t been feeding that little fantasy.”

Cor gave Gladio a cool glance, not backing down. “You know how difficult it is for me to say no to an Amicitia.” 

“Well start because she can do just as much good inside the city as outside of it. And because we’re friends I won’t even comment on how it seems like you’re implying you’ve already been working with her.”

Cor hid the ghost of a smile behind his hand and opted not to respond. Loqi set his lance to the side, stretching as he looked across the fire to where Cor and Gladio sat together.

“Even if she doesn’t leave the city to fight demons it’s still worth it for her to learn how to defend herself. The walls and the lights of the city aren’t infallible.”

Gladio pulled a face, honey-brown eyes narrowed and unimpressed in the firelight. “Don’t think I asked for your opinion on the matter.”

“Got it anyway.” Loqi said flippantly, not even bothering to watch for Cor’s reaction. Getting into an argument with the Prince’s Shield would not be in Loqi’s best interest, so with that he stretched out on the ground, back to the fire and his companions, hoping they’d take the hint.

To Gladio’s credit, he waited several minutes after Loqi stopped shifting to get comfortable and evening out his breathing to start talking behind his back. Loqi had always been gifted at faking sleep to listen in on conversations; he’d started as a child with his parents, continued in the barracks at the academy and even now he found use in it.

“Can’t believe you’re thinking of vouching for this guy, he’s got a piss poor attitude. Sorry to say but I think you would have been screwed if I hadn’t been there today.”

“Is that so?” Cor’s voice was even with a hint of curious amusement. “Why’s that?”

“Well you seemed off your game and Loqi was an embarrassment. You want proof look at your arm.”

“I think he did better than you’re giving him credit for. He’s quick, he fights smart, and he’s proven he can take a hit. I was impressed today. He’s not too bad to have around; at least when he’s not running his mouth.”

“Cor, c’mon, why you defending this guy? In the middle of the battle he lost his weapon and you don’t find that the least bit concerning?”

Cor laughed a little and Loqi could only imagine Gladio’s face. “The kid saw I was overwhelmed and distracted the coeurl by putting himself in danger. Reckless maybe, but brave.”

“And that still impresses you. I thought you turned over a new leaf after our adventure in the Taelpar Crag.”

“You had something to prove then and he has something to prove now. I don’t see the difference.”

Gladio gave an angry snort. “The difference is night and day. I pushed myself to the limit to protect my Prince to the best of my ability. Compare that to him showing off for you in hopes of saving his own ass. If I didn’t know any better I’d think you had a soft spot for him.”

And Cor laughed, an indulgent chuckle that Loqi hadn’t heard before. “Jealousy doesn’t suit you, Gladio.”

Gladio scoffed and Loqi could hear movement as he shifted. “You know I wouldn’t feel right if I didn’t tell you what I thought.”

“I can always count on your honesty.”

“Yeah, you can.” Silence fell between the two, the only noise in the camp the sporadic popping and snapping of the fire. And then Loqi drifted off, missing whatever else might have been said between them that night. 

…

Their sparse camp was already broken down when Loqi awakened. He sat up stretching, the sky above still pastel pink and blue as the sun peeked above the horizon. At his movement Cor tossed Loqi his own canteen and hefted his pack over his shoulder. 

“We can head back as soon as you’re up and ready.” 

Loqi nodded in acknowledgment, taking a long drink from Cor’s water bottle and standing, hoping Cor didn’t notice the way his face pulled as he tested his weight on his leg. It was annoyingly painful, but Loqi vowed to not let his burns slow him down, and he tossed the canteen back to Cor’s waiting hand.

“Ready when you are.”

The trip back to Hammerhead took longer than the initial trek to find the coeurls. Although he didn’t complain out loud or let his discomfort show, Loqi did walk slower than normal, which of course Cor noticed and accommodated for. Beyond that it seemed every beast within a several mile radius sensed their presence and attacked accordingly. Loqi idly wondered if the pack of coeurls had driven away or scared off these creatures originally and they had flooded back into these lands angry and vengeful after their deaths.

Cindy instantly gasped when the three entered Hammerhead’s garage, stepping away from the popped hood of a pick-up truck to come over and fuss over them.

“Look what they did to ya’ll.” She mourned, looking closely at the surface burns branching up Gladio’s chest. “I never should have asked you to go out there without backup.”

“Its fine, we’re alive and you don’t need to worry about those coeurls anymore.” Gladio said trying to reassure her. “Besides I’d say it went about as well as it could.”

Cindy still pulled a face, not quite believing him, hands on her hips. “Well thank you three, truly. If you want I can get you patched up and get you a room for the night, nothing fancy but at least better than how you spent last night I’m sure.”

Loqi liked the idea of a bed indoors for the night; although he’d agreed to this trip and hadn’t voiced too many complaints yet, Loqi had never been the outdoors type. He preferred fine clothes and expensive food and had even specifically trained to pilot mechs to avoid the grime from battle. But he’d be damned if he let Cor know any of that.

“Thank you for the offer but we’re needed down in the Quay and should keep to our schedule.” Cor was pragmatic as always, and Loqi knew he’d be looking forward to another night of sleeping on a slab of rock.

“Well I’ll take you up on it,” Gladio said to Cindy as he turned back to face Cor. “Then I suppose I should head back to Lestallum and check up on Iris.”

Cor nodded and then let his pack drop from his shoulder, holding it out to Loqi. “Would you mind taking this to the car? I’ll say my goodbyes and we’ll be off.”

Loqi sighed but took the pack, giving Cindy a wave as he exited the garage.

Loqi was already settled in the car when Cor and Gladio exited the station, both stopping next to Gladio’s motorcycle. Loqi could see their mouths moving but was too far away to hear the words. He was bored and wanted to get moving and was about to roll down the window and shout over to Cor when he saw the two shake hands, Gladio then pulling Cor into a hug, their hands trapped between them. Loqi stared on in surprise, but when he saw Cor’s arm raise to Gladio’s back, patting his shoulder blade and returning the hug, Loqi felt a deep stab of confused jealousy. It came as a rush, pooling at the bottom of his stomach and making him queasy. 

Loqi didn’t want to feel it, didn’t want to contemplate it, and especially did not want to continue watching the scene that made him feel it. Loqi leaned over and honked the horn a few times, feeling a twinge of satisfaction when the two men broke apart. Loqi could see Cor’s eyes roll and Gladio’s lips mouthing an obviously annoyed swear even from the passenger seat. The moment had ended, though, and with a last farewell, Cor returned to the car, raising an eyebrow at Loqi as he sat nonchalantly in the passenger seat.

“Are you in a hurry?” Cor deadpanned as he slid into the driver’s seat, pointedly not looking at Loqi as he started the car and reversed into the road.

“There’s only so much daylight left.” Loqi said, flashing a cheeky grin. And it was probably the only thing he could say that Cor couldn’t argue with, so Cor hummed neutrally, put the car in gear, and drove.

…

It was well into the dark of night when Loqi woke, startled out of some dream and thrown back into reality. He looked over to Cor, illuminated only by the lights of the dashboard, stoic and striking even in shades of blue.

“I thought we were stopping for the night?” Loqi asked with a yawn and a stretch, looking out the window for a sign or landmark to give him some idea as to where they were.

“It’s still early in the night,” Cor tightened his grip on the steering wheel and fell into his usual silence. Loqi assumed that was the end of the conversation until he added: “There’s a haven coming up in a few miles, I planned on stopping there.”

“You’re the boss.” Loqi yawned again and rolled the window down, unbuckling to get closer to the window to feel the breeze on his face. He rested his cheek against the arm on the windowsill and chanced another look over to Cor. “So did you mean what you said about me yesterday?”

If it surprised him that Loqi had been listening in, he didn’t show it. “I don’t say things unless I mean them.”

“Well it was nice to hear, nonetheless.” Loqi wanted to say more about it but felt a bit tongue-tied, he hadn’t expected Cor to stand up for him or compliment him so openly to Gladio and the words had left him jumbled since last night, his stomach fluttering. The unfinished hug between those two had left him even more confused. The hot pang of envy he’d felt when watching them embrace still simmered in his gut hours later. “So you and the Shield, you seem to be close.”

Cor nodded, not commenting on the abrupt change of subject. “I’ve known him since he was a child and I trained him for the Crownsguard personally. I do what I can to keep track of him as I owe it to Clarus to keep an eye on Gladio and Iris both.”

“Seems kind of an ass to me.” 

“I’m sure the feeling is mutual. You don’t have to be friends but at least attempt to stay on his good side in the future.”

Loqi grinned, the blonde hair swept over his forehead caught by the breeze. “If you didn’t notice I was on my best behavior; he was the one talking shit about me. I’m the innocent party here.”

And Loqi liked the way Cor had to fight against the grin that turned up the corner of his mouth, his face relaxed in the gentle glow from the dash. 

“Of all the words I’d use to describe you, innocent would not be among them.”

“That’s cruel, compliment me behind my back and insult me to my face.”

Cor laughed at that, and Loqi found he liked the way it sounded, liked that he was the cause, and liked being alone with Cor again. The night they’d spent traveling and camping with Gladio had only served to remind Loqi that he was an outsider, that beyond Cor he was still considered an enemy by the whole of Lucis. And even with Cor he was only just standing on the thin line between enemy and tentative ally. Yet with just the two of them, Loqi found he didn’t need to be so guarded, found himself comfortable in Cor’s presence. He hadn’t expected to change his opinion about Cor so quickly or easily, but the man had a baffling hold on him that Loqi decided he could ponder and dissect at some other time.

Silence fell between them again and Loqi stared up at the stars, surprisingly bright and clear for how hot and hazy the day had been. The night was still and the curve of moon illuminated the desert in a wash of midnight blue, beautiful and foreign compared to the landscapes Loqi had grown used to over the years.

“Y’know, for being the end of times or whatever, it’s not actually all that bad out here.” Cor gave Loqi a hard look before turning his gaze back onto the road.

“And what is that supposed to mean?”

“It means that you guys have things figured out. This is bad but at least everyone is working together. It would not be like this over in the Empire. Everyone there is a bit more selfish. I can only imagine what civilians are going through back home. Well, if there even is a home anymore.” Loqi sunk further into the seat, itching to do anything with his hands other than just leave them lying on his lap. He felt remorseful and restless and an uncomfortable part of his brain knew his guilt was self-inflicted by abandoning Gralea at its most desperate.

“You left before it got too bad, then.” It was a statement rather than a question, and Loqi nodded in agreement.

“Like I said, selfish. I saw the writing on the wall and got out, there was nothing left for me over there anyway.”

Cor hesitated a moment, the silence in the car palpable before asking: “No family then?” 

Loqi looked over at Cor a bit uncertainly, knowing Cor didn’t usually deem it necessary to ask personal questions. Their conversations so far had been purposely casual, Loqi taking the initiative to fill the usual silence with whatever came to mind, undeterred by the single word replies and noncommittal noises Cor typically gave in response. 

“No,” he answered, trying to keep his voice unaffected. “Only child, my parents died before I went to the academy. It’s been me ever since.” He tried to shrug his indifference, but couldn’t deny to himself that the subject of his family was a sore one for him. To anyone else he would shut down the line of questioning, but the idea of Cor wanting to know more about him was something new and tremulous, and if anything could get Cor to say more than a few words per conversation Loqi would gladly nurture his curiosity. “To be fair though, that made it pretty easy to jump ship. A lot of other people I knew needed to make accommodations for their parents, spouses, kids. Who knows if any of them actually made it out.” He trailed off of that line of thinking, looking down at the floor as that ball of guilt reappeared in his gut again. 

He couldn’t count how many times he’d thought about what would have happened if he’d stayed and helped instead of bartering for passage on the nearest airship, if he could’ve made some difference for his own people rather than tucking tail and escaping the continent, only to wind up plotting to do the exact same for his enemies. It was a thought that kept him up at night, heart pounding while he listened to the wails of demons skulking around camp and wondering just how many of the people he’d known in his old life were now dead or worse. 

Cor’s voice brought him out of his spiral.

“You could do good work here. Even if it’s not your home, keeping the people of Lucis safe, it’s important, it’s something. ”

Loqi glanced up at Cor’s words, wondered if he’d accidentally said some of his thoughts out loud or if Cor just had a sixth sense for when soldiers were wallowing in self-pity.

“Well you guys can’t exactly be choosy about who you recruit these days, huh?” 

Cor exhaled what might have been a laugh if the twitch of his lips were to be believed. 

“No, but I’ve always believed when it comes to fighting an enemy stronger than yourself, persistence and determination are what makes the difference, and you’ve shown you are nothing if not persistent. That’s what we need to get through whatever else is thrown at us.” 

Loqi couldn’t help but stare at Cor, pulling his mouth to the side in restrained surprise. It sounded a little backhanded, but what Cor had said was mostly flattering. If Loqi was a better person, he would take the praise for what it was and consider this night as a win, but Loqi was nothing without the sarcasm that flowed thick as blood in his veins, either.

“Careful there Marshall, that sounded dangerously close to a compliment, if you’re not careful I’ll get the wrong idea and start to think you actually like having me along on this little road trip.”

“I wouldn’t go that far.” But the hint of smile was back this time and it felt like teasing, maybe a little closer to the truth than either of them would admit.


	2. Chapter 2

By the way Loqi had his upper body hanging out of the window like a dog; Cor assumed like most of the other landmarks of Lucis, Loqi had only ever seen Galdin Quay from an airship. As they took the swaying curves down the valley toward the shore, Loqi’s body moved with the motion, and Cor couldn’t help his gaze drifting from the road to Loqi. His wild blonde locks were pulled by the breeze, his pale skin tanned gold in the sunlight; Loqi was on his knees and bowed over the window sill and Cor let his eyes roam down the line of his spine, taking in the taper of his waist and the curve of his ass. Then Cor realized what he was doing and dragged his eyes back to the road a scant moment before Loqi settled back in his seat, smiling broadly. 

“I would have loved to see this place before. The beaches in Gralea are mostly rocks and the water is too rough to get in; plus it’s freezing. I wonder if it’s safe to get in here.”

Cor let Loqi fill the silence with his idle chatter like usual. It seemed as though he always had something to say or an opinion to share and Cor wondered if Loqi minded that the conversation was so obviously one-sided. After so many years of traveling alone, his discussions revolving around his job and little else, it had left him at a loss when it came to starting and continuing casual conversations. Even doing his best to answer questions and seem interested in the random thoughts Loqi voiced, Cor noticed that Loqi would look disappointed more times than not when he could only manage a few words in response.

Even though it shouldn’t matter greatly, that they were out here to test Loqi’s mettle, Cor still found himself not wanting to disappoint Loqi. Perhaps it stemmed from years of following orders, his desire to please his superiors and the royal family through any means necessary becoming his renowned characteristic. That aspiration had followed him through every aspect of his life and it was easier to attribute his need to please Loqi to that personality trait rather than question it further and unveil answers he wasn’t ready to contemplate.

Cor parked and exited the car, heading to the closest set of stairs to head to the main building. Loqi was right on his heels, looking around curiously at the scenery and the few other people down on the beach and along the dock.

Loqi elbowed Cor in the arm, lowering his voice and flashing him a grin. “All these people here and they still need you to come in and save the day?”

Cor gave a nudge back. “How else would I keep my reputation?”

But as Cor looked around, he only recognized a few of the faces of the hunters and Kingsglaive working this section of Lucis. He had left most decisions on where to place people up to Monica as she had better interpersonal skills and a sharp eye for strategy. He didn’t regret the decision but he found it left him at a disadvantage by not knowing the newer recruits personally.

“So who’s running the show down here?” Loqi asked, looking at Cor expectantly.

“Kingsglaive by the name of Libertus. Although I haven’t seen him yet, and he’s rather hard to miss.”

As they approached the open air building constructed over the water, a young woman who wasn’t dressed like either hunter or Kingsglaive waved them down, straightening up from where she was leaning against a podium.

“I’m so glad you’re here to help, Marshall. We haven’t met before but I knew who you were right away.” She was friendly but intimidated, a common reaction when meeting Cor for the first time. Cor tried to seem less imposing, but he’d been unable to outrun his reputation for thirty years and he doubted it’d make a difference now. “I’m Coctura, I worked here before as head chef and now I organize things and keep the show running when Libertus is gone. I didn’t mean to trouble you personally when I radioed up to Lestallum for help; I know you probably have plenty of matters to attend to more important than killing a stray demon.”

“It’s no trouble.” Cor answered automatically before looking pointedly around the room. “Where is Libertus?”

“He took a group over to that old lighthouse at the Cape. Scouting, I believe. I know the plan is to eventually get power back to the lighthouse to have another working dock for boats but right now there’s no telling what creatures have taken refuge in there. This demon I’m concerned about wouldn’t have been an issue any other time, but most of the hunters who are usually here are out on a fishing expedition, so the crew here is currently bare bones. We have enough people to keep the lights on and take care of the small demons that come up on the beach, but this brute has me worried.” She gave Cor a lopsided grin. “That’s why I’m glad you’re here.” 

“Tell us about this demon.” Loqi asked before either Cor or Coctura could say any more. 

“It crawls out of the sea just about every night,” She pointed to a strip of beach in the distance. “The first time I noticed it was out there was about two weeks ago. I guess I should have mentioned it to Libertus then but I didn’t want him to worry the whole time he was gone.”

Loqi made a face, squinting out at the stretch of sand. “Why didn’t you say something?”

“Well honestly, my priority has been on the demons actively attacking us at night. The demon from the sea just… sits in the sand all night.”

That piqued Cor’s interest. “It doesn’t move once it comes on shore?”

Coctura shook her head. “Not that I’ve seen. It crawls to a spot, seems to dig in, then it just stays there until the sun rises and it crawls back into the sea.”

“That’s a bit disconcerting.” Loqi mumbled, crossing his arms and scowling. “Has anyone been over there during the day to see if there are any clues to figuring what the hell its doing?” 

“Afraid not,” Coctura cast her eyes down, looking a bit upset like she’d realized she’d done something wrong. “I’m sorry, I thought that as long as it stayed over there and didn’t bother us I’d just wait for Libertus to return to take care of it. But then about a week ago, even in the dark, I could see enough to realize that it had crawled up closer on the beach to the Quay. Every night since then it’s picked a spot on the beach closer and closer.” 

“It’s okay; we’ll leave tonight and wait for it at the haven.” Cor thought he managed to sound reassuring, Coctura nodding up at him thankfully.  
“Will you be fine just the two of you?” 

“Don’t worry about us,” Loqi flashed a grin, cool and confident. “Besides we’ll be within sprinting distance if things go bad.”

Coctura still looked worried but she nodded at Loqi’s words. “Well I’ll be watching from over here. If there are any supplies you need please help yourselves, otherwise good luck.”

An hour later found Cor and Loqi walking side by side down the beach, gear over their shoulders, backs to the Quay.

“It was kind of creepy hearing about that demon. I’ve been concentrating so much on the ones on land that it didn’t even occur to me how many are probably out in the oceans, just swimming around down there where it’s perpetually dark.” 

Cor nodded to acknowledge the thought, contemplating the demon himself. Cor had begun to hear rumors of different types of demons being spotted out in the wild, not only mutated strains of common demons, but new unidentified creatures that avoided humans, and acted abnormal. He’d heard they’d been spotted as dark shadows in the sky and slithering through valleys and forests, so Cor was not surprised by the news of some new dangerous thing crawling out from the depths of the ocean.

When they arrived at the stretch of sand Coctura had pointed to, Cor could easily see that something large had been prowling this section of beach. Heavy tracks lead to and from the ocean beyond what the tide had washed away. Sand was kicked and piled along the beach in different spots, each pile leading down the strip toward the Quay.

“This is weird,” Loqi said, tentatively approaching the closest pile of sand. “This thing is what, digging holes?” Loqi kicked over the pile of sand, but it revealed nothing, he scowled and then looked around.

“Here,” And Cor gestured to a wide swathe of sand next to the pile that had been recently disturbed. “This part looks as though it was dug up.”

Loqi moved to stand next to Cor, and with a moment’s thought, began to poke the tip of his spear into the sand. After a few more enthusiastic stabs, Loqi’s spear cracked through something and the two were assaulted by an overwhelming odor of what Cor could only describe as a mix of rot and blood and the sea.

Loqi jumped back, wrinkling his nose in disgust and pulling up the collar of his shirt to breathe through the fabric. “What the fuck is that?”

Swallowing down his disgust at getting closer, Cor moved a few steps over from where Loqi had been investigating and dropped to his knee, digging careful through the sand.

“I don’t know if that’s a good idea.” Loqi’s voice wavered from somewhere over his shoulder, but Cor continued to dig down, and after moving about a foot of sand he saw them.

He’d uncovered the tops of several eggs, large and pale green. 

“No,” Loqi breathed, his brows knit together in confusion and revulsion. “That demon was crawling up here to lay eggs?”

Cor stood, brushing the sand from his hands and staring down into the hole, for once at a loss of what to do next. 

“Looks that way.” He finally managed, then looked across the beach where over a dozen other piles of sand indicated the creature’s nests. Loqi followed his gaze, paling a bit.

“There’s so many,” Loqi whispered in disbelief, gripping his lance tighter. “This demon has her own personal army just waiting to hatch. Fucking Hell, I didn’t even know demons laid eggs.”

“I didn’t think they did, either.” 

Loqi looked up at Cor, green eyes still wide and a little lost. “So now what do we do?”

“Stick to the plan,” Cor hefted his pack and began the last leg of the trek over to the haven. “We surprise her, kill her, and then destroy the eggs before they can hatch.”

“Ah well, when you put it like that, it sounds super easy.” 

…

Cor and Loqi sat side by side on the edge of the haven as the darkness rolled over the beach and sea. Cor thought fleetingly about the fact that he was watching a rather romantic sunset with Loqi, but he was too anxious about their impending battle to make any comments, and Loqi seemed uncharacteristically at a loss for words as well, so they continued to sit in silence. The water slowly grew dark, the foam from the waves the only way to differentiate the sea from the sand. They’d foregone the fire as to not reveal themselves to the demon, and when the sun finally sank fully below the horizon, the air around them was pitch black, the only lights for miles the spotlights circling Galdin Quay and the dim shine of the moon behind the tree line. 

It didn’t take long for Cor to hear a churning at the edge of the water as something emerged from the waves; his eyes had adjusted to the darkness and Cor watched as a giant shelled demon dragged itself onto the beach. It moved slowly, pushing itself up the sand with bulky curved flippers. It reminded Cor vaguely of a sea turtle, but it had too many legs and a set of massive claws that clicked at the air. Its face also had too many teeth, its mouth wet and gaping open, the rows of sharp white contrasting horribly with the black maw of its throat.

Loqi leaned over, quiet as he whispered Cor’s name into his ear. “Not going to lie, I feel a little out of my league here.”

They watched as the demon dragged itself to an empty plot of sand, turning around and shoveling at the beach with her back flippers. She wasn’t far away but the two would have to sneak off the haven and come around behind the creature to surprise her. The plan was to wait until she actually began to lay the eggs, hoping she’d be distracted and vulnerable enough for Cor and Loqi to gain an advantage over her.

Even from their perch a distance away from the demon, the rotting stench of the creature still reached them, Loqi trying not to gag as he plugged his nose and breathed through his mouth. Time dragged as Cor waited for the creature to finish digging. His stomach churned from the constant odor and Cor felt he’d never rid himself from the lingering stink. He chanced a look over to Loqi who had pulled his knees up and wrapped his arms around them, burying his nose against his jeans and breathing loudly against the denim.

Finally the demon stopped digging; crouching over the hole it’d created, its body heaving. And if Cor had thought the stench before was bad it was nothing compared to the smell that came off the creature now, the decomposing ocean stench now infused with blood and mucus and other internal smells Cor didn’t even want to contemplate. 

Cor leaned close to Loqi’s ear, not wanting to wait any longer than he needed to. “Let’s go.”

Cor led the way off the haven and onto the beach, slipping silently through the night, Loqi a few steps behind him. As they approached the back of the demon Cor was astounded by just how large the creature was, the top of her carapace easily twice the height of Cor, the body spilling out from under the shell wide and fleshy and moist.

Cor summoned two orbs of thunder magic to his hands, the spheres crackling against his fingertips and sending pulses of electricity down along his palms. He pressed one into Loqi’s hand, the sphere sparking between them as they touched.

“Throw this under her; I’ll aim for her head. On three.” 

Loqi nodded and then they split up, both hurling the flickering orbs at the creature, surprising her as twin bombs of electricity rocked her massive body from the bottom up. The demon cried out in surprise, a watery, gurgling groan before she heaved herself up, rounding on Cor. He called his katana to hand, circling the demon and waiting for her to make the first move. The thunder spell had left faint glowing branches of electricity along the wet tracks of her skin, but it had seemed to do little more than enrage her, the pincers at the front of her body snapping menacingly, her gaping mouth emitting a low constant rumble.

The moon finally rose above the trees and Cor got his first real look at the demon. Her claws were black chitin, and her wide eyes were set deep into her skull, beady and black like an insect’s. She seemed incapable of closing her jaw beyond quick biting snaps and her body was molded and formed against her shell, her flesh rolled and creased and flattened beneath the weight of it.

Cor decided to keep the demon’s attention on himself, hoping she wouldn’t notice Loqi as he circled her in search of a weak spot. Which didn’t last long as Loqi stabbed into the creased skin of her back flipper, the demon screaming and whirling around to snap her claws at Loqi. He dodged her, wrenching his lance free, but she pressed further forward and Cor took the chance to slice his katana down the seam between her shell and skin.

Surrounding her, Cor and Loqi alternated slashing and stabbing at the demon’s body, taking the attention off one another when she came too close to biting or slicing either of them. The demon was bleeding and snarling and frustrated when finally it stopped and let out a deep guttural scream; Cor had to cover his ears and brace himself, the roar loud enough to shake the ground and disrupt the rhythm of his heartbeat. When the scream faded away, Cor noticed that the ground was still rumbling and he looked around hurriedly, trying to place the cause. 

From the far side of the beach where Coctura had said the creature had roosted at first, small demons were crawling their way out of the sand. Each demon was roughly the size of a dog and dozens upon dozens poured from the nests, their gaping mouths snapping and whining.

Cor heard Loqi calling for him, an edge of panic in his voice. Cor decided to regroup and joined Loqi, pulling back several paces so that he could keep the she-demon and her approaching babies in his line of sight. He noticed Loqi was bleeding down his arm, his shirt ripped where her claw had snipped his bicep. Loqi seemed to pay it no mind, his eyes flicking back and forth between Cor and the demons. “What do we do now? We can’t concentrate on killing her if her babies are taking bites out of our ankles and I doubt she’ll be cool with us slaughtering all her children in front of her.”

“Stay back from her for now, let’s thin the herd of as many of the small demons as possible before we concentrate on her again.”

Loqi nodded, holding his lance up defensively as the first wave of angry snapping demons surrounded them. The small demons were relatively easy to kill, Cor’s katana slicing through them easily, their shells not yet hardened; there were dozens jumping against him, snapping and pinching at his arms and legs, but between himself and Loqi, a gory pile of dead demons grew steadily at their feet. When the onslaught of demons lessened, Cor took a quick moment to breathe only to hear the mother demon scream into the night sky again, awakening another wave of demons to hatch and claw out of the sand. This batch was closer and reached Cor quickly; they were small but their teeth were needle sharp, each bite drawing blood and making Cor feel as though he was being eaten alive. It took longer to fight through this wave of demons and Cor could feel himself tiring, his muscles protesting and his lungs gasping for air and before they had even slaughtered all the little demons the mother banshee screamed down the beach, another nest hatching and crawling in their direction.

“This isn’t working,” Loqi hissed at Cor. “There are too many nests and we’re going to be overrun by the babies if we don’t concentrate on finishing her off now!”

Cor shot Loqi an exasperated look, shoving his katana through the body of another demon before answering. “Does that mean you have an idea?” Cor hoped he did because he was exhausted and knew he couldn’t keep up this pace for the entire night. Loqi lost himself in thought for a moment then his face brightened.

“Yes, but I’ll need your help. I need to get on her back. She won’t be able to reach me with her teeth or pincers from there. And then I can drive my lance straight through the back of her fucking neck.” The words tumbled excitedly from Loqi and he looked into Cor’s eyes. “She’ll never give me enough time to climb though; can you throw me up there?”

And Cor couldn’t help huffing out a laugh, remembered watching how the Prince and Gladio had practiced moves exactly like that, making it look easy.

“Yeah, I think I can manage that.”

Loqi yanked his spear from the corpse of a demon and tipped his head in the direction of the she-demon. “Let’s do this.”

Cor pushed past the crowd of baby demons, ignoring the teeth and claws grabbing greedily at his jeans and he took off in a run toward the mother demon. “Run and jump,” Cor called back over his shoulder at Loqi. “I’ll push you up.”

Cor sprinted to the creature’s side, stopping just out of reach of her claws to drop to his knee, bracing himself and holding his hands out as a step. Loqi had understood, running behind him and a moment later he was in the air, trusting Cor to hold him up. As soon as Loqi’s foot was in his hand, Cor threw him with all his strength, Loqi using him as a springboard and easily landing on the broad plane of the demon’s shell. The demon roared, snapping her claws first at Cor, who was forced to drop down and roll away, only to realize too late that Loqi had landed on her back and was crawling up the shell toward her neck. She screeched and shook her body trying to knock him off, but Cor stabbed his katana straight through her back flipper, distracting her as Loqi climbed. The demon screamed and gnashed her teeth, rounding on Cor, her head stretching toward him, teeth clacking as she bit the air.

Then suddenly she froze, mouth falling slack, alien eyes blinking wildly. Cor looked up to see Loqi had driven his lance down through the back of her neck, blade sliding through the folds of skin as he stabbed it down again and again. That low sound was rumbling from deep in the demon’s throat and with a wet cough blood started to pour from the creature’s mouth, splashing over the sand. Cor wrenched his katana free from her flipper and ducked under her chin, avoiding the waterfall of blood to slide the edge of his blade against her neck, hoping that between the two of them the neck wound would be enough to take her down. 

There was a final anguished cry and Cor backed away from the creature as her legs and flippers shook trying to keep her body standing. Cor saw Loqi’s head swivel around, searching for a way down, his lance still buried deep in her skin to give him a decent handhold for when the demon finally collapsed. The demon groaned as she hit the sand, her weight shaking the ground, and knocking Loqi to his knees as he fought to keep from being thrown. She seemed to deflate, the wide fleshy body spreading out and flattening in death.

Cor looked up to see Loqi rise back to his feet, pulling the bloody lance from the demon’s neck with a wet, sucking sound. Loqi flashed him a reassuring smile and jumped from the body, landing heavily in the sand next to Cor.

“Let’s finish the rest of these little bastards off.”

Cor nodded in agreement, wading back into the wave of demons, killing them quickly and methodically while Loqi speared the things and kicked them away, his exhaustion obvious from the slump of his shoulders and his slow reaction to the demons gnawing at his boots. 

It took longer to destroy the herd of creatures than Cor anticipated; the moon sitting high in the sky when the last demon fell to the sand, its dying breath rattling in its throat. Cor spent a long moment surveying the beach, trying to catch his breath while Loqi dropped down to the sand, panting as he sprawled out carelessly along the blood-stained shore.

“C’mon,” Cor said, nudging at Loqi’s side with his boot. “We’re not done out here but I need to rest for a bit. Let’s get back to the haven before anything else surprises us.” He held his hand out for Loqi to take; pulling him to his feet and directing him back to the blue-runed rock, its glow stark through the darkness. 

“Whatever you say.” Loqi mumbled, steps heavy as they returned to the campground. Once they climbed the slab, Loqi immediately laid down again, his body tired and bloody and covered in sand. Cor took pity on him and built up a fire himself, calling Loqi over once it was burning brightly.

“So why aren’t we heading back to the Quay tonight?” Loqi asked as he pulled off his boots, sand spilling out of them as Loqi looked on in chagrin. 

“How many of those nests hatched? Three? Four, maybe? It looks like there are over a dozen nests out there, if we leave any of those eggs intact this will just happen again.”

And Loqi groaned, a mix of exhaustion and disgust and irritation and he threw himself back to lie fully spread out on the stone, face scowling as he pouted. Cor couldn’t help but laugh a little at the sight, feeling an annoying little thread of affection spool in his gut at the theatrics.

“How’s your arm?” 

Loqi looked up at Cor before turning his attention to his arm, a trail of dried blood leading from his bicep to his wrist. Loqi rolled up his sleeve to show twin slices on opposing sides of his arm. The blood had already clotted, dark red as it scabbed over. Loqi laughed a little.

“She got me good with one of those pincers, felt like being snipped with scissors. Surprisingly that’s the worst of it for me.” He held up both arms, using the firelight to look closer at the small bite marks and pinched skin the baby demons had left him with. “The rest of this is just annoying.” 

Loqi met Cor’s eyes again, wide and bright green in the light of the flames. “How about you, you okay?”

“Nothing too dire.” Cor stretched out near the fire, fighting to keep his eyes open as he laid his head down on his pack. “I’ll survive the night.”

Cor could hear Loqi exhale a laugh and shift to get comfortable against the rock. “Glad to hear.”

…

The sun was already high in the sky when Cor sat back in the sand, pulling out his canteen to take a long drink. They’d spent the entirety of the morning destroying eggs, Loqi complaining about each new uncovered nest and the stink from the eggs so heavy in the air Cor could almost see it. The bodies of the sea demons had already bubbled up and seeped into the sand during the night, but each fresh egg cracked left a half formed demon body to rot in the daylight.

Loqi sat down beside him, holding his hand out for the canteen as he settled into the sand.

“I think that’s all of them.” Cor said, shading his eyes from the sun as he peered across the beach. “Coctura and her crew will just need to watch this area closely the next few days to make sure we didn’t miss any.”

Loqi just nodded, still drained and irritated by the whole ordeal. Cor took pity on him, standing to grab their bags from the edge of the beach. Loqi followed, and they returned to the Quay in silence, neither in the mood to talk much. 

When they finally dragged themselves up the steps of the dock, Coctura was waiting for them, sitting at a table on the balcony with a young blonde man, her leg bouncing nervously.

“You’re finally back,” She said warmly, her face only falling for a moment before recovering as the breeze shifted and she ended up downwind of them. “What were you doing all morning?”

“That demon laid eggs.” Loqi deadpanned, giving her a tired look. “We dug up the nests and destroyed all of them. Hopefully.”

Coctura nodded thoughtfully. “I’ll ask some hunters to camp out there for a few days to keep watch.” She looked out at the distant stretch of sand for a moment before turning her attention to Cor.

“I couldn’t see much from here but that first lightning spell lit up the entire beach. I’ve never seen such a grotesque demon.” She shuddered at the memory. “Thank you two so much for taking care of that thing. It was only a matter of time before it made its way down the beach.” 

She then hopped up, smile wide. “As a personal thanks from me how about a nice dinner? I have a few supplies here I think I can work a little magic on.”

Cor’s instant reaction was to refuse the offer and say it wasn’t necessary; Cor had never considered helping Lucis for the benefits or glory, after so many years it simply came to him as naturally as breathing. He tried to ignore Loqi’s pout in his periphery as Coctura looked on, unfazed and ramping up to try a different approach.

“Really I insist, Marshall. I want to thank you the best way I know how. If it changes your mind at all, honestly my offer is selfish on my part. Look around, everyone here eats canned and dried food and fish cooked over campfires. Cooking a nice meal for once would just make me feel, I don’t know, normal for a while.” She smiled at Cor but it wavered and Cor understood.

“Of course,” He answered, changing his mind and watching both blondes light up. “We’d be grateful.”

Coctura looked delighted, giving them both a genuine smile. “I’ll start getting everything ready, Dino would you mind showing them to the guest room so they can clean up before dinner?” She looked them over a little awkwardly. “If you’d like you can leave your clothes outside your door and I’ll ask someone to come by and clean them for you.” 

Loqi had already shed his jacket and pulled idly at the collar of his shirt. “No problem, we can take a hint.”

Dino brought them to a room on the far side of the building close to the main dock.

“Hope you don’t mind sharing,” Dino said stopping in front of the door to their room. “We had to convert the rest in to storage and sleeping areas for the hunters and Kingsglaive. Didn’t expect much of anybody else passing through here so just the one guest room.”

“It’s fine,” Cor reassured. “We’ve been camping the last several days, I’m sure it’s much nicer than we’re used to.”

“If that’s the case then it definitely is.” Dino countered. “Take your time, she’s a bit of a perfectionist and with the ingredients available around here dinner might be a while.” Dino gave them a wave and he was gone, Loqi staring after him and mumbling something about Lucian accents under his breath.

The room was nice, two double beds, balcony, and floor to ceiling windows facing out over the ocean. The corners of the room were stacked with boxes and crates but everything else was clean and organized.

Loqi left a trail of discarded clothes to the bathroom and with a sigh Cor kicked them in a pile next to the door and waited on the balcony for his chance to shower.

…

Coctura already had a table set on the balcony next to her grill and the air was saturated with the smell of herbs, spices, and roasted fish.

“You’re just in time,” Coctura crowed happily, pouring something fragrant over the filets on the grill to make them sizzle. “It’ll be ready soon.”

Cor and Loqi settled at the table and only then did Cor get a good look at Loqi. He looked relaxed, his clothes casual, his damp hair pushed back from his eyes. He was looking out over the horizon as they waited, his chin resting in his palm and the reflection from the ocean brightened and dilated his olive colored eyes. Cor was interrupted by Coctura setting two steaming plates in front of them, Dino just behind her pulling a cork from a bottle of wine and pouring them both a glass.

“Fancy,” Loqi said softly, eyeing his plate, fingers inching toward his utensils.

“Thank you,” Coctura said, beaming. “It’s not an exact replica of my menu’s usual dish, but I hope it will be a suitable substitute. So enjoy.” And then she was shooing Dino away and Cor and Loqi were left alone.

Loqi didn’t waste any time diving into the meal; Cor wasn’t surprised after the countless complaints Loqi had about their food so far on the trip. It made Cor wonder how Loqi would react if Cor ever cooked for him, if it would surprise Loqi that Cor knew his way around a kitchen.

Loqi swallowed down a long drink of wine then leaned closer to the table, smiling up at Cor. “She really went all out, didn’t she?”

Cor nodded, tipping back his own glass of wine. He’d never been the type to drink heavily, but he was the type to appreciate a good vintage, and the wine was strong and smooth sliding down his throat. Loqi laughed and shifted his feet beneath the table, their knees bumped, and Cor could feel the solid press of Loqi’s skin until Loqi pulled away.

And suddenly Cor thought the entire set up felt like a date. Granted, Cor couldn’t remember the last time he’d been on a date, but between the lavish dinner, the full bottle of wine, the warm sunlight reflecting off the water, and the press of Loqi’s knee against his own, it felt intimate the way a date would.

The thought was ridiculous, but it stuck in Cor’s mind as dinner progressed. Loqi finished his glass of wine and poured himself another, topping off Cor’s glass without asking. Loqi’s cheeks were pink as he told Cor the story of the last time he’d had a dinner so good: at a banquet during his last year at academy where half the recruits had gotten food poisoning yet Loqi had still gone back for seconds.

The story had made Cor laugh, and Loqi flushed a little further, draining his second glass, smile still on his lips.

As they were finishing their dinner, Cor noticed Loqi kept looking at his right hand curiously, and after the third time of averting his eyes when Cor caught him staring, Cor finally just asked Loqi what he wanted.

“I was looking at your ring,” Loqi admitted. “You’re not married so what does it mean?”

Cor’s ring was a dark metal band on his ring finger, the shape of a grinning skull molded into the band. “Every member of the Crownsguard is given a piece of jewelry along with their uniform. It’s another way of identifying us.”

Loqi seemed to accept the answer, settling back into his seat.

“You never take it off.”

“And I suppose I never will.”

Loqi went back to picking at the remains on his plate, and maybe the alcohol gave Cor a little less inhibition as well as he asked Loqi:  
“Have you always been so open about speaking your mind?”

And Loqi looked up, thoughtful. “Well yes and no. In front of the Emperor or the Chancellor? Hell no. Everyone else? Yes. I don’t like being kept in the dark or excluded and I’ve found a lot of people are willing to talk if you just ask. You, for example.”

“I would credit anything you know about me to your determination in the face of adversity. It reminds me of how I used to be.”

Loqi raised his brows with a sly smile. “I’ve always been motivated. Sometimes I suffer from tunnel-vision, but it seemed to be viewed positively in the Empire.”

Coctura returned then with Dino in tow, clearing away the dishes by piling them in his hands.

“I hope everything turned out well.” 

Loqi grinned up at her. “Best thing I’ve eaten in a year.” 

She blushed at his words. “Too bad you two didn’t visit before; you would’ve had an entire menu to choose from, plus dessert. The only good thing to be said about working with limitations like these is it breeds creativity.”

“Yeah, before.” And Cor noticed the comment took a little wind out of Loqi’s sails, so he stood, Coctura turning her attention to him.

“Thank you for the meal. If you don’t mind though, we have an early start in the morning.”

“Of course Marshall, please make yourselves comfortable.”

…

Once back in the room, Cor claimed one of the beds, laying back on it to let his stomach settle. Loqi, curious and tipsy, snooped through the crates and boxes shoved in the corners of the room for storage. A small box marked ‘Libertus’ tucked behind another box revealed a bottle of whiskey that Loqi decided to crack open, looking through the disused kitchenette in the corner to find two tumblers. 

“I don’t believe that’s what Coctura meant when she said to help ourselves to supplies.”

“She gave us a bottle of wine with dinner; she knew exactly what she was doing.” 

Loqi poured both of them a generous helping, cutting the whiskey with a splash of water before handing Cor a glass and heading out onto the balcony, leaning heavily against the railing. The sun was setting, the horizon a fiery mix of orange and red fading to purple and Cor found himself drawn outside as well, leaning next to Loqi to watch the sunset. He’d never given himself much time to stand still and watch as night fell even before Insomnia’s invasion, let alone taken the time to enjoy a sunset between the days of recent turmoil. Yet he stood beside Loqi and watched, whiskey burning down his throat, fading warmth on his skin, and the smell of salt water filling his senses. 

He enjoyed the closeness to Loqi in a way he couldn’t quite describe. Loqi was annoying and sarcastic and his decisions were often colored by the reckless abandon of youth, but he had a deeply thoughtful side and his curiosity knew no bounds. Cor thought that Loqi was almost his polar opposite: their personalities clashed, yet he found his irritation and frustration at Loqi only made him more curious about him. He knew he was asking Loqi more questions, asking for more information, listening to his words and his voice and liking what he heard. That fact left a hard lump in Cor’s gut that worried him, the feelings it arose so obvious that Cor refused to accept it, squashing down any possibility of letting it come to light.

After thinking about Loqi for so long he couldn’t help but slide his eyes to the right, giving Loqi a sidelong look; Loqi must have felt his gaze, facing Cor with a lazy turn. And Loqi must have been feeling the alcohol, his cheeks pink and his smile easy as he reached into Cor’s jacket pocket, his fingers finding and pulling out Cor’s phone. He raised a curious brow at Loqi, but didn’t bother trying to take it back.

“What do you think you’re doing with that?”

Loqi pulled up the camera, pointing Cor’s phone at the horizon.

“How many more of these sunsets are there really going to be? I want to remember what they look like in case this darkness is forever.” Loqi tapped his finger against the screen several times, capturing the red and pink and orange clouds hanging low in the sky.

Cor watched Loqi, skin glowing gold and soft in the sunlight, blonde locks falling into his eyes. He lowered the phone, expression thoughtful but carefully guarded. Loqi handed Cor’s phone back, sheepishly mumbling a thanks before turning back to the sunset, taking a sip of his drink before leaning heavily against the railing.

Cor looked at his phone indecisively before taking one last picture and slipping it back into his pocket.

Once the sun set fully and the spotlights switched on to illuminate the Quay, Cor and Loqi retreated inside, Cor getting comfortable on his bed while Loqi wandered the room, seeming restless.

“So I was thinking, that stuff you said at dinner, do you really think we’re alike?”

Cor looked up at that from his spot on the edge of the bed, but Loqi was resolutely not looking in his direction, his attention back on snooping through the boxes in the room again. Cor took a moment to collect his thoughts before answering.

“If I’m being honest I do think we’re alike. I was reckless when I was younger, always pushing further to prove myself to others. That doesn’t remind you of anyone you know?”

“It does, but that isn’t exactly a positive character trait. If you changed does that mean you think I need to change?” Loqi trailed off, maybe not even making sense to himself anymore. 

But Cor understood, had seen flashes of Loqi’s insecurity even though he attempted to hide it with confident words and cavalier attitude. He wanted approval, wanted to be judged worthy for who he was, not who he was compared to. As they traveled together Cor discovered that the impression he had gotten from every run-in with Loqi while a pawn of the Empire did Loqi a disservice. When given a chance, his intelligence and sympathetic side showed through as well as the determination and decisiveness that Cor respected.

“I only changed because I couldn’t keep up with my lifestyle; you though seem to have no problem there.” 

Loqi smiled a little and seemed to accept his answer; then he swallowed, the next words leaving his mouth with some difficulty. “I think if we’re alike at all it’s because I spent so much time when I was younger learning about you. It obviously started as a way to discover your weakness and get the upper hand on you, but maybe it turned into me imitating the traits of yours that I wanted to have in myself.”

Loqi suddenly looked uncomfortable, like he’d revealed too much and wanted to retreat. Cor decided not to press the conversation, just letting Loqi’s words steep in his brain. It wouldn’t be the first time common enemies discovered that buried below their hatred laid begrudging respect. 

Loqi gave up on digging through the boxes, crossing the room to sit on his own bed facing Cor. 

“I think I’ve lost my tolerance to alcohol.” Loqi mused. “Guess I’ll leave the rest for Libertus after all.”

“A fact I’m sure he’ll appreciate.”

Loqi gave Cor a small smile, he still looked distant, but Cor felt good about how the night had gone, liked seeing a more vulnerable side to Loqi. He saw Loqi pull back his blankets and climb into bed, sprawling across the entire mattress.

“Hey um, goodnight.” 

“You too.”

…

The two left Galdin Quay early, Coctura and Dino walking them to the edge of the dock under the first rays of morning sunlight. Dino yawned and dragged his feet, but Coctura remained attentive and pleasant, her eyes bright from the reflection of the ocean.

“I just want to thank you again for helping with our problem. Anytime you find yourselves down this way your meal is on me.”

Then they were settled and on the road again, the beach growing smaller in the rear-view mirror.

Once they were a bit away Loqi turned to Cor, face indecisive. “So you think those two are,” And he finished the thought with a crude gesture and a grin.

“Why, you interested?” And Cor refused to even acknowledge that little twinge of emotion that flashed in his gut at his own words.

“Just curious. Maybe it’s one of those opposites attract sort of things. I mean she makes the best food I’ve ever eaten and my first impression of him was that he looked like a car salesman.”

Cor couldn’t help the exhale of laughter, knowing better than to encourage Loqi. “Now you’re just being rude.”

“I’d call it being truthful.” 

“Maybe they’re both just happy to have found someone who makes them forget about all this for a little while.” 

Loqi crossed his arms, petulant. “Well now you’re just making me sound like an ass for saying otherwise.”

“You don’t need any help with that.” Then Loqi’s elbow was in his rib as he struggled to keep a straight face.

“Very funny.” 

…

Their haven for the night sat a stone’s throw away from a river, the rushing water loud as it echoed against the rocks on the riverside. That night, along with the rest of their gear, Cor pulled fishing poles and a tackle box out of the trunk, piling them next to the car. Cor set the camping gear next to the haven, hoping Loqi would take the hint, before walking the rest of the equipment to the river’s edge.

Ignoring the sleeping bags and packs, Loqi followed Cor down to the edge of the riverbank, watching him curiously as Cor searched through his tackles for a lure and bait appropriate for the location. “So why haven’t we tried fishing before now? I’m pretty sure I’ve made it known often and loudly that I’m tired of jerky and dried fruit.”

Cor saw right through him. “Even if we catch something it won’t taste like Coctura’s cooking.”

Loqi grinned. “Don’t change the subject, why aren’t we knee-deep in the river each night catching dinner?”

Cor sighed, debating on how to tell the truth but not set Loqi off on a tangent.

“Because I assumed I’d be doing the majority of the fishing as you don’t strike me to be the outdoors type.”

“And what gives you the idea I can’t fish?”

Cor shrugged, barely looking up from where he was tying the knot on his hook. “You just seem a bit high maintenance.”

Loqi pursed his lip, scowling. “After what we’ve been through what the hell gives you that idea?” His voice was pitched oddly and Cor wondered if he’d accidentally stumbled upon one of Loqi’s insecurities.

Loqi stared at him expecting an answer and Cor sighed internally at saying the wrong thing yet again; he’d been slowly learning that any comment or opinion he’d share with Loqi was met with either enthusiastic agreement or volatile offense. It made conversations a mine field that he needed to pick through, choosing his words carefully to keep the peace. Although Cor occasionally couldn’t help but find it amusing to rile Loqi up, saying whatever came to mind just to keep him off balance. He felt it only fair after Loqi said so many things with the expressed point of getting under Cor’s skin that he should do the same. This time he decided to take a different approach.

“Well you take care of yourself; nice hair, pretty face, you don’t strike me as the type to willingly get down in the dirt.” Cor had to force himself to hold back his laugh as Loqi turned red, no doubt caused by equal parts embarrassment and anger. He opened his mouth several time to refute him but the words wouldn’t come. For a moment Cor took pity on him; perhaps he’d let slip a bit too much, walking the line between what was acceptable between them. Then Loqi finally squeaked out:

“You think I’m pretty?” 

And Cor rolled his eyes, of course that would be what Loqi would zero in on. “I think you’re high maintenance, too. Unless you come down here and prove otherwise.” 

Loqi made a face but the challenge got Loqi moving, fishing gear in hand as he joined Cor on the shore of the river. As it turned out, Loqi didn’t actually know how to fish much like Cor assumed. He had a vague idea but the intricacies escaped him and left him at a loss. The color on his cheeks refused to fade but he listened closely to Cor’s directions, only balking when Cor had him bait his own hook. When they both had cast their lines, sitting together in companionable silence on the riverbank, Cor let his eyes drift to Loqi. He knew he did that too often and too openly but was unable to make himself stop.

Loqi’s face was serious as he concentrated on his line, but his lips were still slack and soft and his hair shone gold in the fading orange sunlight. Maybe Cor had made a mistake saying his thoughts out loud because Loqi was undeniably pretty, and each time Loqi caught his eye he couldn’t help but think it. The more time they spent together gave Cor more time to appreciate the complexities of Loqi, gave him time to see past the capricious and abrasive exterior to the less self-assured, carefully thoughtful side of himself that Loqi tended to hide.

Each day in Loqi’s company made Cor think better of him, made their shared conflicted past seem less egregious. Even if the rest of Lucis was unable to forgive Loqi’s crimes, Cor could see the benefit in working together with a former strong voice from the Empire moving forward. Especially as more refugees found their way across the ocean and searched for asylum, it would go a long way in the relations between their people if Loqi could be accepted and show that Lucians and Graleans could cooperate with one another. 

Cor had had his doubts about Loqi’s motivations when they began their trip, but the more time they spent together had Cor believing Loqi was genuine. It also made him think disappointing little thoughts of what-if, if Loqi had been Lucis born in the first place, if they hadn’t both been born and bred to be enemies from the very beginning.

Loqi brought Cor out of his reverie by huffing in frustration when he reeled in too quickly against a tug on the line only to have the fish escape with his bait.

“Here,” Cor said, taking pity and setting Loqi up again to cast out. “Take it slow.” 

Loqi nodded distractedly, his concentration on the rod and the water instead of Cor. The next fish that bit the line Loqi was more successful at hooking and he was careful and methodical as he reeled the thrashing fish in. And when the fish finally broke the surface, Loqi gave a cry of excitement, reeling it in the rest of the way to flop on the riverbank near his feet. He knelt down, holding it near the hook so it couldn’t flip back into the water. 

“I got one.” Loqi laughed as he gave the fish an appraising once-over.

And then Loqi looked up, a brilliant genuine smile lighting up his entire face. His features were warm and beautiful in the waning golden light, green eyes tentatively meeting Cor’s and searching for approval and praise and something else Cor couldn’t decipher. And all at once every single fleeting thought and late night musing about Loqi coalesced into an overwhelming pang of undeniable want that sucker punched Cor straight in the gut. Whatever walls he’d attempted to build between them crumbled to the wayside, his heart stirring in a way it hadn’t in years.

_Oh._

So that was the way things were going to be.


	3. Chapter 3

Loqi tossed and turned in his sleeping bag, the unseasonable heat sinking in to his core and making falling back to sleep impossible. With a groan he finally ripped back the cover, body laid bare to cool the sweat on his skin. Looking over, Loqi could see Cor: huge, silent and unmoving in sleep. And because Loqi was nothing if not petty, he kicked at Cor’s legs, earning him a sigh and an unimpressed: “What?”

“I can’t sleep.”

“I fail to see how that’s my problem.”

“It is if I keep kicking you.”

At that Cor rolled over, leaning up on one palm to loom over Loqi, his own sleeping bag falling down to pool in his lap forgotten. Loqi shrunk back away from him, but couldn’t help noticing that Cor was shirtless, skin and muscle soft blue from the glow of the runes, the twist of his torso leaving half of him in ink black darkness. 

“It wouldn’t be in your best interest to continue thinking that line of thought.” Cor deadpanned, sinking back down into his bedding and adjusting the cover over himself.

“Nothing that has happened to me in the past five years has been in my best interest,” Loqi gave a ridiculous yawn and stretch, before fanning himself with his hand. “I just don’t like to suffer alone.”

Cor pushed the palms of his hands into his eyes and rubbed and to Loqi’s ears the sigh he heaved seemed incredibly melodramatic. 

“Well I’m suffering.”

Loqi hid his smile behind his hand. Tormenting Cor had become his hobby of choice on their road trip, and even if Cor didn’t admit it, Loqi could tell that he didn’t hate the constant interruptions and questions now nearly as much as he had in the beginning. Somewhere along the way Loqi had begun to worm his way under Cor’s gruff exterior, their time together softening their interactions from volatile to almost companionable.

“It’s too damn hot to sleep.” Loqi whined, turning over to press his cheek against the cool stone.

“We’re downwind of the Disc, it’ll be more bearable tomorrow night. Until then, deal.”

“I’d deal better if I was distracted. Like a nice late night chat. So what do you miss from before?” Loqi asked; changing the subject and hoping Cor wouldn’t just ignore him to turn away and fall back asleep. 

“Peace and quiet.”

“Ha ha. I meant before all this, you ass.” Loqi rolled his head to meet Cor’s gaze and demand his attention, but he was already staring past him, out into the darkness of the wild dotted with the tell-tale violet glow of demons pulling themselves into existence.

“I miss structure. I don’t like standing around waiting for things to happen. That’s what this feels like, everyone just holding their breath and wondering what comes next.” Cor let out his own breath in a deep exhale, and Loqi could hear the tiny bit of strain in his voice when he followed up with: “And my friends. I wasn’t there for them when they needed me.”

Loqi felt a guilty lump in his throat form at Cor’s answer. He knew Cor meant the King and his Shield, dead now for months but obviously still weighing heavily in Cor’s thoughts. Although Loqi hadn’t been a part of that particular plot against the crown, he had known the details of the plan and was preparing in Gralea for the next phase of the invasion. He was guilty by association and wondered if that would always be the rift between them causing Cor to never fully trust him. Although Cor had returned his lance and slept soundly a foot away most nights, sometimes Loqi still caught Cor giving him a calculating look, his blue eyes narrow and hard as steel. Perhaps that was how he’d stayed alive all these years, by never letting his guard down for anyone, let alone a former enemy who had been tossed into his life by chance of circumstance. 

But Cor had also knowingly said something that exposed a vulnerable side of him and despite knowing it wouldn’t be welcome, Loqi wanted to say something supportive or vaguely apologetic. Yet nothing sounded right or appropriate in his head so Loqi second guessed himself. How could he seem genuine when only a few weeks ago Cor had still considered him an enemy, dangerous and untrustworthy? They had made great strides in building a tentative relationship, but it could easily crumble if Loqi said the wrong words or tried to downplay his own involvement in the Empire. Cor seemed to appreciate honesty, yet as straight forward as Cor usually was, much of his life was still a mystery and Loqi didn’t want to overstep when it came to talking about a situation he was indirectly responsible for. So he took the easier path instead, deciding to return to his usual trick of avoiding tough conversations by use of deflection.

“I think I miss the stars.”

Cor’s eyes met Loqi’s and he raised a brow in confusion.

“If you direct your attention upwards you’ll see they’re still there.”

“Nah,” Loqi shook his head gesturing vaguely upwards with both hands. “It’s not the same. The sky is too muddled. It’s like... trying to look through a fogged up window. You can only see the brightest stars now; hell, we’re lucky the moon rises.”

“Did you spend a lot of time stargazing before?”

“I guess you could say that. Back in the academy on clear nights I’d sneak up to the roof and lay out under the stars. At first it was just to get as far away as possible from the idiots in the barracks, but eventually I found I just enjoyed the view.” 

Cor gave a hum of agreement. Despite his eyes being closed Loqi could tell he was still listening, but he was close to drifting back to sleep.

“I miss long showers, too. That five minute, low-pressure, pathetic excuse for a shower in the refugee camp just feels like someone’s taking a piss on you.” Loqi scowled just thinking about the public shower tent of the city, with its cheap shampoo and soap that made his skin itch. Beggars couldn’t be choosers, but Loqi would rather bathe in a river than suffer the indignity of that again. 

Cor gave a tired laugh which served to only deepen Loqi’s scowl. “If it’s such a problem you can use the shower at my apartment. You’ll at least get a few more minutes til the hot water runs out.”

And that was the best news Loqi had heard all day. “Really? You wouldn’t mind?”

“With how seldom I’m actually at that apartment I doubt I’d even notice. Might as well someone take advantage of it.”

And Loqi felt a smile split his face as he settled back into his sleeping bag. Hot daily showers were now something he knew he had taken for granted in his old life and Cor’s offer was a kindness he hadn’t expected. 

“Thanks, I appreciate it.” And Cor murmured back something in the affirmative, but Loqi could see his body had gone mostly slack, the rise and fall of his chest steady. Loqi still didn’t feel like he could sleep, but Cor’s gift had earned him a bit of respite and Loqi didn’t bother him for the rest of the night.

…

The entire next day Loqi was sluggish and in poor form. He’d fallen asleep when the temperature had finally cooled enough to be comfortable, maybe an hour before the sun rose. Luckily the plan for their day was mostly driving, punctuated by two drop-offs at havens. The first had been simple, a quiet campsite at the bottom of a bridge with a staircase and parking, the second one had them hiking through a forest, hauling gear and supplies since there was no road leading to the haven.

Loqi blamed his tiredness for not realizing they’d been quietly surrounded. Cor dropped his gear first, shouting a warning to Loqi as he summoned his sword, putting his back to Loqi to face his half of the advancing bulette herd.

Loqi quickly had his lance in hand after Cor’s warning, but could feel that he was at a disadvantage, his reflexes slower than normal. From behind him Loqi could hear the clang of Cor’s sword against the armored skin of the beasts and the low angered cries as the blade sunk deep. Loqi felt as though he was making no progress against the beasts, his lance either glanced off their armor or the blade failed to penetrate far enough to do serious damage. The bulette he was concentrating on he finally got onto its back, leaving its gut open for Loqi to stab into. As he drove the lance home he heard Cor shout his name and then Cor’s body collided into his. Loqi realized too late that a bulette had been rolling toward his back about to barrel him over before Cor took the hit in his stead, the bulette’s claws raking over Cor’s back and shoulder.

Loqi yelled out Cor’s name, but Cor had already risen back on his feet, katana buried deep in the charging bulette’s neck. Loqi’s heart was pounding heavily in panic, but he helped Cor finish off the last of the herd before taking a tentative step toward Cor, trying to get a better look at his wound, hand already reaching out.

“Not now,” Cor said, gruff but not unkind. “Let’s get to the campground before anything else decides to give us trouble.”

Loqi nodded slowly in agreement, putting both their packs over his shoulders to help Cor out as they hiked the rest of the way. 

Once at the haven Loqi took the initiative to build a fire, the day leeching away quickly. For once Cor let Loqi take lead, instead settling himself on his bedroll, carefully shrugging his arms out of his jacket and setting it aside. As Loqi approached with water and a roll of bandages, Cor peeled the shirt off his body and Loqi could see the extent of the damage. The claw marks were deep, three distinct bloody gashes curved around his shoulder and down along his shoulder blade. Each movement Cor made caused a little more blood to trickle down his spine.

“Oh, Cor,” Loqi whispered, feeling a little dazed.

“Does it look as bad as it feels?”

“It’ll definitely scar.” Loqi wet a cloth, leaning behind Cor. It didn’t even occur to Loqi to ask if Cor had even wanted his help before diving into the task, but Cor hadn’t complained, his body slack as he leaned over, resting his elbows on his knees. Loqi washed the blood away quietly, gently scrubbing at Cor’s skin. When he was satisfied with his work Loqi pressed a wide gauze bandage to the wound, slowly winding bandages around Cor’s shoulder and torso to hold it on.

Loqi’s heart beat so loudly in his chest he wondered if Cor could hear it. Before now he had wondered what it would be like to touch Cor, feel his skin underneath his fingertips. The thoughts had been gradually getting more pressing; leaving him twisting hotly in his sleeping bag knowing Cor was only an arm’s length away. He couldn’t pinpoint the exact moment when his demeanor toward Cor had changed, but each day they spent together left Loqi aching and longing for a little bit more.

He knew Cor had no idea of the thoughts racing through his mind and he intended to keep it that way, yet his fingers had an agenda of their own, resting on Cor’s skin even after tying the bandage off.

When Loqi hadn’t moved for several seconds, Cor shifted, looking over his shoulder to Loqi and for a moment their eyes met. Loqi felt his treacherous heart flip in his chest, leaving him a little breathless. He wasn’t sure what emotion Cor saw on his face, but Cor’s expression looked a little shocked, a little indecisive and when he opened his mouth to say something, without meaning to, Loqi’s eyes dropped to Cor’s lips. Cor exhaled slowly and Loqi could feel the shaky movement beneath his fingers before Cor shifted away, reaching for his pack. 

“Thank you.” He said simply, pulling another shirt out and putting it on with a little difficulty.

“No problem.” And Loqi was quiet after that; resolutely looking anywhere in their camp except Cor for the rest of the night until sleep claimed him.

…

Loqi took a pull from his water bottle before resting his head against the window, staring out at the sun stained trees and fields of long grass passing by in a blur. They had just dumped off another crate of supplies at some campground Loqi couldn’t be bothered to remember the name of. This time there had been two hunters already at the haven, sitting around a campfire talking and sharpening their blades. At Cor’s approach and introduction the two were overwhelmed and seemed star-struck by the Immortal and Loqi couldn’t help but over exaggerate a roll of his eyes, earning him a pointed glare and Cor mouthing the word stop in Loqi’s direction. Loqi smirked to himself as he found an open spot to set the crate down, looking over at the other three engaged in some light conversation.

Loqi would never admit out loud that he was occasionally still left awestruck by Cor as well. The clean lines of his profile, the shift of hard muscle when he’d cut an enemy down, the intelligence and the authority that invited others to look up to him during times of crisis. The Marshall had always been the man he’d compared himself to as he pushed himself up through the ranks after the academy. He had been the ultimate prize, the showdown that would cement Loqi’s place among the Empire. In his spare time he had pored over any information he could find about the older man, his desire to best him bordering on obsession. It had irritated Loqi to no end when he’d discovered that he wasn’t much more than a footnote in a dossier to Cor. He wondered idly if their time spent together had changed that at all.

Loqi would need to be blind and deaf to miss the fact that Cor spoke more openly to him now, occasionally greeting him with a smile, something fond ghosting beneath the gruff exterior. Looks passed between them now, but Loqi couldn’t tell if there was a deeper meaning there or if it was only wishful thinking on his part. Loqi could feel the heat spread under his skin whenever he caught Cor’s gaze on him, wondering what was going through his mind, wondering if it was anything like the thoughts that plagued him nightly now.

The previous night weighed heavy on his mind; the sight of Cor hunched over, elbows resting on his knees, back bare and bloody. Tongues of firelight danced across his skin, over the knobs of his spine and the blades of his shoulders. Touching Cor’s skin had only fanned the fire burning in him, whetting the curiosity of what Cor would feel like under his hands fully. 

Loqi realized he had been staring only when Cor spoke his name, signaling him over to leave. The walk back to the car was again oddly silent. Loqi wondered if Cor was thinking about the previous night as well and wondered if he’d gone too far, leaving Cor quietly counting down the days until their trip was over. It was something that Loqi deliberated back in forth in his head constantly, how at times it seemed as though Cor looked at him with the same sort of burning interest that Loqi had simmering under his skin and other times Loqi felt almost rebuffed by the blank look distressingly common on Cor’s face. 

It left Loqi in a spiral of self-doubt, his heart not knowing what to do every time he looked Cor’s way.

“It’ll be a few hours before our next stop.”

Cor’s voice lifted Loqi from his thoughts for a moment, and he nodded, showing he’d heard before his gaze drifted back to the window.

…

Hours passed quietly, Loqi lost in his head and Cor concentrating on the road as dusk settled over Lucis. After so much time though, Loqi wanted to break the silence, wanted to hear Cor’s voice.

“Do you blame me for what happened?” Loqi couldn’t help giving voice to the question, it was a thought he mulled over when riding silently in the passenger seat and when the quiet of the night sunk over the camp and the gulf between them seemed too vast to bridge.

Cor froze for a moment and then recovered, his fingers tightening almost imperceptibly on the wheel. “No,” he said at a distance, voice low. He sighed and Loqi could tell there was so much he was leaving unsaid. “Not you personally. Sometimes I think you’re just as much a victim of circumstance as the rest of us.”

Loqi was quiet for a while after that, turned to the window so he could stare up into the dark, muddled sky thinking on Cor’s words.

“Do you think if I was born in Lucis I would have been Crownsguard?” And maybe some of the regret and insecurity deep in his gut leaked out with the question. Loqi had never questioned his loyalties before, had never followed an order from the Empire with less than confident bravado, yet seeing how the world had ended up made his stomach cramp with worry and guilt when he lay down at night without the chaos of the world to distract him. Perhaps if he’d just been born in a different country he wouldn’t have been indoctrinated into the wrong side of the war. Despite what Cor said, he didn’t feel like a victim, he just felt like a pawn of the Empire. He hadn’t been deceived; rather he had just been too blind or ignorant or zealous to see the truth in front of him. And that laid the guilt and responsibility from his own decisions heavy on Loqi’s own shoulders. 

“Yes,” And Cor’s voice brought him out of the downward spiral of his own thoughts. “And I would have trained you myself.”

And those simple words left his insides in turmoil; in all his years among the Empire he’d never met another officer that inspired the respect and desire to please that Cor encouraged simply by being who he was. Rather, Loqi’s life since joining the academy had been controlled chaos, worthless beyond what power he could claim for himself. His superiors were foolish men like Caligo, all talk and no substance. Surrounded by men like that Loqi fought for the Empire but he was not motivated by the Empire, his need for status and authority selfish but expected in their society. 

Now in this new chapter of his life, obligated to impress Cor to secure his place within Lucis, Loqi found himself instead wanting to impress Cor. Loqi had thought perhaps it was a holdover from spending so many years concentrating on the older man, learning everything he could about him and devising ways to be his better. Now that they were thrown together as allies, the obsession had transformed to a deep-seated respect and desire for Cor’s approval. Before he had only seen glimpses of Cor, in battle, in reports, in information sent back by spies, but now he knew just what Cor was capable of and wanted to be seen as an equal. 

“If only, right?” And Loqi gave a false grin, returning to swim in his own thoughts. 

…

Loqi felt as though the two of them had been hiking for hours, each corner of the forest they were trekking looking exactly the same and leaving Loqi with the dizzying feeling of being lost. They had already restocked a one room cabin buried in the woods, although Loqi thought keeping such a remote place well stocked was a waste of supplies. Cor had mentioned something about it being directly on the path to Lestallum if one walked, but Loqi was tired and grouchy and unwilling to be told that he was wrong anymore on this trip and tuned out whatever came next. Loqi thought about asking how much longer the walk would be but Cor had already promised Loqi several times that they were still following the trail and they’d be back to the car in another mile, and had seemed rather aggravated the last time he’d had to say it. 

So Loqi sighed and followed, only looking up when he heard a rustling sound from the thick underbrush. Loqi managed to say Cor’s name and tap his arm before a dozen hundlegs erupted from foliage. Loqi couldn’t help the sound of disgust he made, scrabbling wildly at his lance to hold it in front of him before any of the creatures could get close.

“I hate these things.” Loqi hissed, swinging the blade of his spear at the snapping mandibles of the closest hundleg. Cor didn’t look any more enthusiastic about the prospect of fighting them than Loqi did, summoning his katana with a defeated sigh.

No matter how carefully Loqi swung his blade, or how far away the beast was when he stabbed it, he was splashed with guts and juices and blood from each dying hundleg. His bare arms were covered with streaks of yellow-green viscera and the slippery lumps of gore running down his face and the side of his neck made him want to retch.

When Cor sliced the head from the last creature, he gave Loqi a long look, eyes roaming over his ruined clothes and skin stained with gore.

“Let’s find somewhere to clean up.” Cor said, less a suggestion, more a plea.

Luckily their path had already taken them close to a river, the sound of it growing as they walked side by side through the forest. When they broke through the clearing the river in front of them was rather wide but shallow, the current slow.

Cor picked his way down to the bank of the river, setting down his pack and gingerly pulling off his layers of filthy clothes. Loqi set his own pack down and undressed, peeling the soiled shirt from his skin and shimmying out of his jeans.

And Loqi felt a bit like a voyeur when he turned his eyes to Cor. He’d seen Cor shirtless a few times before, like in the chill of the mornings where he’d strip off one shirt and quickly replace it with another, and the night Cor had been injured and Loqi bandaged him. Yet those times didn’t seem as gratuitous as now, with almost Cor’s whole body on display. Loqi felt his cheeks heating up and betraying him, but it didn’t stop him from memorizing every detail of Cor.

Cor was standing in water hip high, the current drifting by him lazily. Cor had a cloth and was scrubbing at the yellow-green smears on his face and neck, the water trickling down over the rest of his body. Loqi shouldn’t have been surprised by the amount of muscle Cor hid behind his clothes, he was a full head taller than Loqi and had the build to match, yet the hard cut of muscle and abs still impressed him. Seeing Cor now glistening and practically godly in the water made Loqi’s stomach flip a little self-consciously as he stripped his own clothes. Loqi knew he was fit, but his body was lean and compact, well built for vaulting with his lance and cramming into mechs easily.

Loqi waded into the cold water, finally just splashing in to get himself used to the temperature. Cor looked unimpressed as Loqi dunked his head, coming up for a gasp of air with his hair slicked back.

Cor ignored Loqi as he paddled around, continuing to scrub his arms and down his chest, washing away the filth from the earlier encounter. As Cor was distracted, Loqi could see the full extent of scars that covered Cor’s body. Ranging from small silvery lines, to large puckered wounds that would kill a lesser man, Loqi felt another level of respect layer on top of his opinion of Cor. Then Loqi laid eyes on the bright red claw marks over his shoulder as he passed the cloth over them and a furrow of guilt curled in his stomach. But Cor continued as though it was nothing, and Loqi knew he should stop, that he was being obvious and inappropriate, but he couldn’t drag his eyes from the way Cor’s hands moved over his body. Loqi wondered what those hands would feel like on his skin.

Cor looked up then and caught Loqi’s eye, and Loqi’s heart pounded and told him to avert his eyes, but something in Cor’s gaze trapped him. 

Cor didn’t look surprised that he’d been staring. Loqi couldn’t decipher the look on Cor’s face, the only way he could describe it would be that Cor had been asked a question and he was contemplating an answer, one he needed time to decide on. 

Then the moment was gone as Loqi dove below the surface, trying to cool his burning face. When he came up for air, Cor was already back at the riverbank, shaking the water from his hair before digging clean clothes out of his pack.

Loqi wondered what the look had meant; had felt for a moment like Cor was staring straight through him, somehow able to read all the thoughts swirling in Loqi’s brain. Or maybe Loqi wasn’t as subtle as he thought and Cor could tell the reddened cheeks and dilated eyes were from him and not the sun. 

Loqi finished washing the hundleg gore from himself, joining Cor on the riverbank.

“As soon as you’re dressed we can find an actual camp for the night. It’s early but I think I’m done for the day after all this.”

Loqi laughed, hopping on one foot as he struggled to pull on a new pair of jeans. “For once we are in complete agreement.”

And then he fell over on his ass, Cor’s laughter following him to the ground.

…

The evening grew cold as Loqi rolled out their sleeping bags next to one another, smoothing down the fabric as Cor cooked their dinner over the fire. The smell of the flame grilled fish had Loqi’s stomach growling and he sprawled out on his bedroll with a groan, watching both Cor and the food hungrily. 

“Staring won’t make it cook faster.” 

Loqi felt the color rise to his cheeks and covered his head with his arms, ignoring the comment. Their teasing had become almost second nature and it still left Loqi’s stomach fluttering and his mind overthinking all the possible meanings of every word Cor spoke. He was left confused and wanting often, the way Cor left his blood pounding through his veins and his heart in his throat, Loqi couldn’t help but be infatuated. 

Cor pulled the fish from the fire, getting up to join Loqi on the bedrolls. He handed Loqi his skewer before stretching out and getting comfortable.

Loqi blew on the fish before picking impatiently at it, the charred flesh blistering against his fingers. Loqi stuck his burned fingers in his mouth and shot a glance to Cor who was already looking at him knowingly and Loqi scowled.

“So what did your Crownsguard buddies say when you came up with the idea to drag me around Lucis on this deranged road trip?”

“Monica had some reservations,” Cor said, taking his time to choose his words. “She cooked up more than a few scenarios where this turned into an elaborate assassination attempt.”

Loqi stifled a laugh. “I suppose with what she knows of me that’d be par for the course.”

“It’s in her nature. Monica plans for any and all possibilities no matter how unlikely. It makes her exceptional in the Crownsguard, if a little paranoid.” Cor took a bite, chewing and swallowing before continuing. “Beyond her not many question my decisions.”

“So why did you make that decision?” And Loqi’s voice was a little more serious than when he’d started, the amusement bleeding from his tone. “After all we’d been through over the years what made you think that I wouldn’t just get you alone to kill you?”

Cor met his eyes, gaze unwavering. “Because I believed you needed a second chance. Thought maybe you could be more than what the Empire used you for. If I didn’t give you a chance I’m not sure anyone else in Lucis would have.”

And Loqi knew he was speaking the truth, and it make a funny little feeling wriggle up Loqi’s spine. He didn’t want to disappoint Cor, didn’t want Cor to be proved wrong by taking a chance on Loqi.

“Thank you.” And Loqi didn’t know what else to say past that, so he concentrated on his food.

After they finished eating Loqi laid back on his sleeping bag, mildly surprised when Cor laid back too, both of them staring up through the darkness as the fire burned low.

“It’s clear tonight,” Cor said, voice low in the chill of the night. “You can see the stars.” 

And he could, as the fire dimmed to embers Loqi could see the brilliance of the night sky, for once not muddled by clouds or the creeping grey haze that seemed to envelop the sky most nights. Loqi felt a warm feeling gently pool in his insides. Never in a million years would Loqi have believed from all the nights he sat alone on the roof of the academy stargazing that one day he’d be doing the same in the wildlands of Lucis by Cor the Immortal’s side. The thought filled him with a tentative hope; that the change between him and Cor was only the beginning and that despite his past his future was not set in stone.

“That’s the Hydraean.” Loqi pointed up to a cascade of stars, tracing the shape of the constellation with his finger. “And there is the Fulgurian.”

Cor followed the direction of Loqi’s hand, but the shape of the lightning astral was less obvious so Cor shifted nearer, pressing close to Loqi to follow his line of sight. It took all of Loqi’s willpower to keep his breath even and his heart under control as their shoulders touched.

“What other ones do you know?” 

And Cor was serious, was interested, and Loqi felt his heart swell as he turned his head to look at Cor, their faces so close Loqi could see the depth of his soft blue eyes.

Smiling, Loqi said: “All of them.”

…

Night had already fallen by the time they finished setting up camp. Unsurprising, as the daylight had only lasted about six hours that day; the sky above them a dim, yellow-grey leaking through the clouds. Loqi kicked off his boots and curled up in the pile of blankets and sleeping bags he’d been hoarding instead of spreading out next to the fire. Cor might have rolled his eyes at Loqi’s cocoon, but that would be unsurprising, too. 

When Cor was satisfied with the size of the fire, he grabbed the bag containing their supplies, placing it down between them as he settled to Loqi’s left.

“Dinner’s served.” Cor said, gesturing to the bag. Loqi snorted a laugh, not bothering to crawl out from his nest.

“Don’t be offended if I don’t jump at the opportunity. I think you spoiled me with all that fresh fish lately.”

“I would be genuinely surprised if you weren’t spoiled before that.”

Loqi reached out just far enough from the blankets to flip Cor off, retreating when he heard the answering laughter. 

After Cor fell silent Loqi shifted the covers so his view of Cor was uninterrupted. He felt brazen and unapologetic as he stared. He wanted to look, to memorize every detail of him during their last nights alone together. After their return to the city Loqi would either be accepted into the hunter community or rejected by it and left to wallow within the walls of the refugee camp. No matter which choice his future interactions with Cor would be minimal and professional and that knowledge left an empty void smoldering in his chest.

When Cor turned his head he caught Loqi’s gaze, Loqi’s instinct was to sink back into the blankets, pulling one up to hide his cheeks and ears. Even with the progress they’d made, and the whirlpool of feelings that bubbled below the surface of his skin, Loqi still couldn’t bring himself to do more than watch from afar. Although his opinion of Cor had evolved from begrudging respect to the heated need he refused to give voice to, he still couldn’t help but wonder what Cor saw now when he looked at him, how much his opinion had changed since their journey had begun. 

When Loqi emerged again after the pink of his cheeks subsided, Cor was leaned back on his palms, an air of effortless ease to him. Loqi felt a little stab of jealousy and he stubbornly stared at the fire instead. When it came to surviving, fighting, and living off the land, it came to Cor naturally. His moniker had come from his ability to adapt and survive, and it seemed even at the dusk of humanity Cor would endure. 

“Does this ever seem hopeless to you, waiting for your Prince to reappear?” Loqi didn’t know where the words came from or why they seemed cruel tumbling from his lips. “I mean think about it, how long can we really survive huddling in that city in the dark? We kill the demons but there are more every day. Sometimes it seems like we’re just delaying the inevitable.” Loqi could see in his peripheral that Cor had turned his head and was giving him a pointed look. 

“What’s the alternative? Laying down and dying?”

“Well no, it just,” He trailed off for a moment searching for the right words. “Sometimes it just seems I’m watching a train wreck. It’s unavoidable, something I can’t change no matter how hard I try. Waking up day after day knowing that, it’s discouraging. And to top it all off it’s my fault.” Loqi’s voiced dropped at the end and he felt a bit embarrassed admitting all his thoughts out loud to Cor. Telling a man famed for his ability to survive that life felt hopeless seemed an odd type of irony.

Cor took a moment then moved the bag from between them, pulling the blanket from Loqi’s shoulders to see him better.

“Do me a favor,” He said softly, moving into Loqi’s line of sight. “Listen. What do you hear?”

“You?” Cor shook his head so Loqi tried again. “The fire?” 

Silence meant he hadn’t gotten it right, with a sigh he concentrated on listening to the sounds around the campsite.

“I can hear demons nearby. A group of goblins.”

“And?” 

Loqi scowled and this time closed his eyes, listening intently for any other sounds of the wilderness. “I think I heard a frog, maybe.”

“Good. What else?”

Loqi listened a few moments longer until he could hear other animals calling out in the darkness.

“Howling. A pack of sabreclaws, I think.” Cor leaned back, seemingly satisfied by the answer, so Loqi opened his eyes again, confused by whatever Cor was trying to make him understand. “So there are animals out there still, we see them all the time, I don’t get what that has to do with what I said.”

“Those creatures out there shouldn’t be alive. Every single night they’re at the mercy of demons, no walls to hide behind. Yet they band together and continue on.”

That didn’t clear things up any further for Loqi. “And? They don’t know any better. They just wake up every day and hope to survive to the end of it.”

“Sometimes that can be enough.”

And the tone of Cor’s voice made Loqi understand; this was how Cor lived his life now, much like those animals he considered it a success to survive each day as it passed. He gave Cor a lopsided smile. 

“Kind of a roundabout way to tell me not to worry so much about the future, huh?”

“Did it work?”

“Maybe,” And Loqi couldn’t help but inject a little more life into his grin. “You know though, you once told me that you didn’t like not knowing what was going to happen. Seems like you didn’t always have this one-day-at-a-time attitude.”

“You’re right. I had to change, too.” He gave Loqi a meaningful look that made his heart flip nervously in his chest. “I’ve realized if you look too far toward the future you miss what’s right in front of you.”

And oh, those words made Loqi ache with want. Every fiber of Loqi’s being wanted Cor to be referring to him with that remark. It was foolish and presumptuous, but when Cor said things like that it seemed to Loqi that a different meaning was just below the surface, that if he could only decipher it he’d finally be able to unravel the tangled thread that had them both ensnared.

It seemed as though this wouldn’t be the night he’d get the chance to though as Cor settled down in his sleeping bag, and gave Loqi a tired goodnight.

Loqi sighed and mumbled back.

…

The next day passed slowly. Distractions came in the form of beasts blocking the road, forcing Cor and Loqi to clear the path before continuing on, and dark clouds that piled up in the distance threatening a miserable drenched night if they didn’t find better shelter than a haven for the night. Loqi was already dreading that scenario and hoped Cor knew this land as well as he claimed so they’d have a roof over their heads that night.

“So you know where you’re going right?”

And Cor just rolled his eyes because maybe Loqi had already asked that question a time or two. Then Cor turned down a dirt path and Loqi was even less confident in their lodgings for the night until a few minutes later they drove up on a tiny cabin hidden in the forest of pine. 

Cor gave Loqi an unimpressed glare as he parked next to the stairs leading up to the cabin and climbed out.

“For doubting me you can fetch both our bags and bring them in.” And Loqi sulked but did as he asked, following Cor up the steps and into the little lodge. He then looked around the cabin, seeing a small fireplace in the corner that he set upon, anticipating the night ahead to be cold. When Loqi finally had a small fire going with the pile of wood left in the cabin, he looked up to see Cor was nowhere to be found and Loqi wandered outside in search. 

Cor was leaning against the railing of the poor excuse of a porch wrapped around the front of the cabin that would be their home for the night when Loqi sidled up to join him. Cor was watching the thick black clouds roll in, tell-tale rumbles of thunder echoing overhead. Loqi couldn’t help thinking Cor was striking in the low grey light, his eyes drawn to him each time lightning forked behind the wall of clouds illuminating the horizon a deep violet.

“Lucky you found this cabin in time with this weather,” Loqi gave him a mischievous little grin and leaned next to Cor, brushing against him as he stretched a hand out to feel for rain. “I was not looking forward to spending our last night out here soaking wet and freezing.” To punctuate his point he wrapped his arms around himself, rubbing his bare biceps and flashing Cor a lopsided grin. The last thing he expected was for Cor to shrug off his jacket and swing it over Loqi’s shoulders, the leather still warm against his skin. Loqi’s breath caught in his throat, but his hands moved of their own accord, pulling the lapels tight around himself.

“Thank you.” Loqi finally managed to say when he was sure his voice wouldn’t expose every single emotion coursing through his veins. “So what are you doing out here?”

Cor huffed a little laugh. “I meant to check the perimeter but I found myself distracted.” He gestured around them, eyes roaming over the simple beauty of the calm before the storm.

“So proactive,” Loqi chided, while giving the scenery a quick once over. “Anything comes out of the woods we’d hear it first.”

“I suppose it’s in my nature to prepare for all eventualities.” Cor paused a moment, eyes sliding to Loqi in a knowing, sidelong glance. “Or at least attempt to.”

“Believe me I know, Empire military brats grow up hearing stories about you.”

“Me personally?” Cor sounded a touch surprised.

“I never mentioned it?” Loqi gave another cheeky grin. “They tell stories of you to new recruits at the academy. A man unable to die that cuts swathes through Empire soldiers like they’re nothing. A man less human than Magitek, killing friend and foe alike, indiscriminately and emotionlessly. You’re basically the bogeyman.”

“Is that so?” Cor sounded amused. “Was that supposed to inspire soldiers to compete to hunt me down?”

Loqi’s eyes flashed, defiant and assured. “I always considered you mine to defeat.”

“And do you still think that now?”

“In a way.” And Loqi’s eyes lingered on Cor, intent and full of meaning if Cor knew what to look for.

The sky above them split open then, the torrent making it impossible for Loqi to hear himself think, let alone talk further. Loqi nodded his head toward the cabin door he’d left ajar and Cor followed him inside. The single room of the cabin was cozy with a dry heat, the fire in the corner burned down low. The roof leaked in a couple places and wind whistled through gaps in the planks of siding, but Loqi couldn’t complain when the alternative was the storm outside or being cramped in the car. Loqi and Cor settled in next to each other, bed rolls parallel; the sound of the storm insulating them from the rest of the wilderness.

Loqi looked over at Cor: strong, handsome, the unknowing center of Loqi’s universe that he’d orbited around for so many years in so many ways. Alone with Cor like this, Loqi didn’t know how to ask the questions he wanted to ask, didn’t know how to phrase any of the emotions that throbbed in his brain when Cor was the subject.

“Why didn’t you ever get married?” Loqi blurted out, knowing it was the wrong thing to say as it came out of his mouth. Cor looked startled by the question, averting his eyes back to the fire, and Loqi bit his tongue too late.

“I guess it was just never in the cards,” Cor shrugged, face carefully neutral. “Both Regis and Clarus believed I was married to my job, perhaps they were right all along.”

And maybe there was a hint of sadness in his voice, and Loqi wondered if he’d stumbled onto a sensitive side of Cor that he tried to hide. He wondered if Cor regretted not spending more of his life on family, if watching his best friends marry and have children had left him lonely and wanting with only his duty to the Crown to dedicate himself to. Loqi had always foreseen a similar future for himself as he pushed himself up the rungs of the military ladder; his priority had been power, respect, and the ever present need to do better and accomplish more. In that aspect Cor had been as much an inspiration as a thorn in his side, yet as he sat close, eyes on Cor’s profile, Loqi felt only an aching desire for some different future for not only himself, but for Cor as well.

A clap of thunder close by rattled the little cabin and the wind picked up as it howled through the pines.

“I shouldn’t have pried,” Loqi said softly when the rain pattering on the metal roof lessened for a moment. 

“It’s fine,” And when Loqi met Cor’s eyes the surprise was gone, replaced by the normal look of annoyed fondness Loqi had come to associate as Cor’s usual expression when it came to him. “Actually it’s funny, other than you no one asks me these sorts of questions. Sometimes I wonder if I’m too intimidating to ask or if just no one cares to know the answers. You though…” Cor trailed off, leaving the thought unfinished.

Loqi flashed a self-conscious little smile. “Yeah that’s me. Nosy to a fault. What I find funny though is after years of reading every dossier and report and scrap of information the Empire had on you, I still knew nothing compared to what I’ve learned the last couple weeks.”

Cor nodded in agreement. “I know the feeling.”

Loqi scoffed, rolling his eyes, “Don’t flatter me, Marshall, our pursuit of knowledge on each other was very one-sided until recently.”

Cor just gave him a steady look and in a tone that brooked no argument he replied: “I knew who you were.”

The comment brought a new set of questions to Loqi’s head, but as he opened his mouth he was interrupted by an embarrassingly large yawn and he decided they could wait.

“It’s getting late,” Loqi said around another yawn. “You coming to bed?” And then he froze, feeling the flush of warmth crawl up his face. He ducked his head, hiding in the collar of Cor’s jacket and not chancing a look at Cor’s face.

“Yeah, I think I will.” And Loqi could hear the teasing amusement in Cor’s voice, and he slumped over, burying his face in his pillow, trying his best to ignore Cor for the rest of the night.

…

Loqi stood leaning on the porch of the cabin, watching Cor pack the last of their gear in the trunk. The sun was barely over the horizon and the surrounding forest was still wet and quiet in the cold of the morning. Loqi still hadn’t returned Cor’s jacket, but Cor hadn’t asked for it back, either, so Loqi thought he must not mind too greatly. Loqi liked the way Cor looked without it as well, just in his casual t-shirt; liked the defined muscles of his arms on display and liked the way the shirt pulled tight across his chest whenever he lifted something. Loqi almost felt embarrassed for ogling Cor, but it was the last day of their trip, and Loqi knew he really wouldn’t get another opportunity to work with Cor again beyond perhaps a shared hunt in the future.

Cor closed the trunk and looked up at Loqi expectantly. “Done daydreaming?”

“Done packing everything up?” Loqi shot back, grinning. “I was waiting on you.”

Cor didn’t even dignify him with an answer, he just got into the car and started it leaving Loqi to run down the porch steps and avoid mud puddles while dashing to the car.

“You trying to leave without me?” Loqi asked playfully, nudging Cor’s arm as he reached out to shift.

“Of course not,” Cor answered, pulling back onto the main road. “I wouldn’t leave my coat behind.”

Loqi made a face, but decided to ignore Cor’s jab and let him think he got in the last word for a while. He settled into his seat for another several hours of driving, watching out the window as a blur of green trees rushed by.

As the hours passed the sun rose higher in the sky, sunlight filtering in through the windshield as Loqi and Cor traveled. The windows were down, a warm wind tousling Loqi’s hair, the subtle smell of forest and river drifting in on the breeze. The moment was quiet and peaceful between them and Loqi let himself be satisfied with the lack of conversation, just letting his eyes occasionally drift lazily over Cor while he sat soaking up the warmth of the sun.

Loqi didn’t know how much time had passed when Cor spoke, breaking the silence that had fallen over them.

“We’ll be at the Taelpar Crag soon. It’s the last major landmark before we hit Lestallum.”

Loqi shifted in his seat to look at Cor thoughtfully. “I’ve heard of it. There’s this rumor that some ancient ghost warrior lives there. Sounds a little out there to me.”

“It’s true,” Cor laughed. “I’ve seen him and I’ve fought him. His name is Gilgamesh.” 

Loqi looked at Cor curiously if not a little skeptically. “I think I had to read a book in the academy about him. You’re saying you met the real Gilgamesh?”

“And I thought you knew everything there was to know about me. Undertaking Gilgamesh’s trial was a pretty defining moment in my early career.”

Loqi frowned. “I’d read about some sort of trials you attempted when you were fifteen but the record didn’t say whose trial or if you’d even completed it. I’m listening if you want to fill me in on the details.” 

So Cor did, telling Loqi about losing to Gilgamesh, yet ultimately impressing him enough to keep his life. About how Gilgamesh had lost his arm but at the cost of Cor’s famed katana and that he had been cast out, the shame and anger at his failure reverberating through every facet of Cor’s life. Loqi listened on with rapt attention, wishing he knew how to convince Cor to tell him more stories about his life. It seemed as though his thirst for knowledge of Cor was impossible to quench and the years of dogged fascination had only served to fan the flames of obsession.

“So Gladio has your sword now?”

Cor gave a shrug and a half smile. “He earned it.”

Loqi scoffed, rolling his eyes. “Please, I’ve fought you and Gladio and you’re better, no contest. The only reason you didn’t defeat Gilgamesh before was because you were fifteen. I bet this time around things would be different.”

Cor shook his head, giving Loqi a sidelong glance. “I’d rather not find out. But thanks for the vote of confidence.”

“Anytime.” Loqi settled back in his seat, but after the conversation faded out a nervous little feeling begun to worm its way up Loqi’s gut. And each mile that brought them closer to Lestallum, closer to the end of their time together, fed the feeling.

…

The lights of Lestallum were bright in the distance against the darkening sky when Loqi asked Cor to pull over at the last rest stop before hitting the city. Cor shot him a look but complied, barely pulling the parking brake before Loqi was out of the car, the restlessness he’d felt for the last several hours coming to a head. Loqi heard Cor ask what was wrong as he climbed out, looking at him over the roof of the car, but he just shook his head, taking a deep breath. He couldn’t explain the anxiousness coursing through him, not without taking a good long hard look at himself and coming to terms with what he felt every time he looked at Cor. It was maddening and confusing and the only relief for it would be to confess to Cor the maelstrom of want surging within him. But not knowing how Cor would react left him unwilling to push further. So he just soaked up the last moments that he had Cor’s undivided attention. It was selfish, but Loqi had already accepted long ago that he was selfish.

“Just need to stretch my legs for a bit, sorry.” Loqi turned, missing the bit of surprise that flashed across Cor’s face.

“Now I know something’s wrong, since when has ‘sorry’ been in your vocabulary?” Cor reached back in to pluck his jacket from Loqi’s seat, where he had balled it up to use as a pillow. He shrugged it on as he went to join Loqi, following him up a beaten path to the edge of the crag. They stood together at the edge, Loqi leaning a bit to look over, cold wind from the crevice whipping tawny blonde hair haphazardly across his face. He eventually straightened his back, running fingers through his hair to tame it. Cor watched him from the side, silent, his only movement fingers pulling idly at the cuffs of his jacket.

“The last time I was in Lestallum I saw this from the airship before I dropped. From that high up it just looks like a landscape or a picture. From down here it looks more real. It’s almost overwhelming.” Loqi sunk down to sit at the edge, leaning back on his palms to look at the blue spikes of crystal closer to the city.

“When were you in Lestallum before now?”

“For a festival.” Loqi said coyly, smiling up at Cor. 

“A festival,” Cor repeated skeptically, moving to sit down beside Loqi. “Right.” 

Loqi couldn’t help but laugh as Cor settled beside him, the sound drying up when he felt Cor’s arm brush against his shoulder. Loqi gave him a sidelong look as Cor settled back on his palms as well, their hands almost close enough to touch. Loqi wondered if Cor could hear how loud his heart was beating or if he could feel his pulse pounding through the grass and dirt.

“Well I was in the city during the festival, so technically I’d say that counts.” Cor shook his head, but the ghost of a smile still twisted his lips.

“Funny I didn’t hear about any Empire plots during this festival.”

“Yeah well I may have run into the Prince and his friends.” Loqi crinkled his nose, ignoring Cor’s huff of laughter. “Don’t rub it in.” He drove an elbow into Cor’s ribs in retaliation, only to have the wind knocked out of him as Cor slammed him into the grass, one hand against his sternum. Surprised, Loqi held up his hands in surrender, smile faltering until he heard Cor laugh, deep and clear and genuine.

The sky had finally turned over fully to dusk, the last bit of light sinking in the west. Loqi stared up into the vast expanse of abyss, the stars barely shining through the blue-black thickness of night. Cor still hadn’t moved his hand, palm splayed over Loqi’s chest, fingertips resting against the hollow of his neck. Loqi felt every breath he dragged into his lungs, felt every solid press of Cor’s hand as his chest expanded. He knew Cor must feel his heart hammering in his chest, must feel the pull of his throat as he swallowed nervously. Loqi ran his tongue over his lip to wet it and Cor’s eyes followed the movement even in the ebb of darkness. 

As the seconds ticked by Loqi felt the tension between them tightening, like a wire being pulled taut, thin and close to snapping. He’d felt this pull before, that night he’d bandaged Cor’s back. When his fingers had lingered on Cor’s skin and Cor had hesitated, taking a shaky breath before pulling away from his touch. That moment between them had felt like a shock of electricity; this moment between them felt like a lightning strike.

A pale sliver of moon finally rose above the tree line. In its meager light Loqi could see that Cor’s eyes were still on him, but he was unwilling to meet Loqi’s eyes, his gaze instead lingering on his jaw and the curve of his neck. Cor’s lips were parted and Loqi wasn’t imagining that he was breathing heavier, nor that his fingertips were pressing deeper into Loqi’s skin. When Cor’s thumb moved back and forth against his collarbone Loqi felt his heart clench and his breath stutter. 

Loqi wanted to move his hands from where they were frozen at his side, wanted to grip Cor’s jacket and pull him down, feel the heaviness of his bulk when he’d settle on top of him. He wanted to know what his lips tasted like, what it’d feel like to run his fingers through his hair and tug, what sort of things Cor would whisper with his face buried against his neck. He got as far as reaching for Cor’s collar when the ground beneath them began to tremble.

Cor was up without hesitation, katana called to hand and feet braced against the shaking below them. Loqi was slower to react; he scrambled up, his heart still pounding in his chest as he focused on whatever had interrupted their moment.

“The hell was that? You get earthquakes out here?” 

“Not since the Prince tamed the Archaeon. No this is something else.”

Loqi groaned in annoyance, turning his back to the dark pit of the crag and scanning the field in front of them for anything out of the ordinary.  
“My lance is back in the car, I need to get it before whatever this is decides to show its face.” Loqi went to move around Cor, but he threw out his arm against Loqi’s shoulder, stilling him.

“Hold on, something doesn’t feel right about this. How many demons appear from underground?” Cor’s grip tightened on his katana and Loqi shot him a confused look.

“All of them?”

Cor shot him an exasperated look. “Not what I meant. When they appear what they come through is more like a doorway that just appears from the ground, this demon though is already through the doorway and moving below the surface and that’s something I haven’t seen.”

“Right. Well I still need my weapon, Cor.” Loqi shifted again to move around him, and this time Cor slapped his hand across Loqi’s chest, gripping a fistful of fabric and giving Loqi a glare that kept him from arguing.

“Just wait.” Looking around his feet, Cor picked up a sizable rock, hefting it for a moment before he threw it as far as possible from their position. Loqi heard it fall with a thud but couldn’t quite see where it had landed. It didn’t matter though because a moment after the rock struck, the trembling beneath the ground became furious, the creature below moving to where the rock had landed and as Loqi watched on in the light of the moon, several arms punched through to the surface and a shower of rock and dirt erupted as a massive, sickly pale creature emerged, each limp arm sticking out from its long body slapping at the ground searching for whatever had made the noise.

“The fuck it that?” Loqi hissed, taken aback by the appearance of the creature. “I’ve never seen a demon like that before.”

“Seems like that has been our luck lately.” Cor whispered back, keeping his eye on the long fleshy segmented body of the demon as it searched fruitlessly. To Loqi’s eyes the demon looked like a mutant hundlegs, if that hundlegs had been skinned down to the pulp and given an oddly human face and limbs.

“So you have any ideas? I’m at a bit of a disadvantage here.”

Cor took a deep breath and nodded decisively. “I’ll distract it. Get to the car as quietly as you can.” Then Cor took off, pounding the ground heavily as he ran the opposite direction. The creature turned its body in Cor’s direction and gave chase, the flimsy limbs pulling the bulk of the creature faster than Loqi would’ve thought possible. He wasted no time sneaking back to the car, his steps light and silent.

After recovering his lance from the back seat, Loqi turned to assess the situation. Cor hadn’t managed to do much damage yet to the creature, a bleeding stump on one side suggested he’d cut off an arm, but the demon seemed unfazed, lunging at Cor with its snapping mandibles and slapping at his katana wildly. Cor was on the defense, being pressed back by the demon; Loqi hefted his lance and as quietly as he could he advanced on the creature.

Once in range behind the demon, Loqi waved an arm to get Cor’s attention then ran a few steps, vaulting next to the creature. As it turned, Loqi scored a stab to its torso before the demon started swinging its arms violently in his direction. Loqi pulled his lance free with a yank and backed up several steps to Cor’s side. 

Without waiting any longer, Loqi pressed in to attack, dodging arms and ducking lunges from the scrabbling mandibles. Loqi stabbed into the creature at every chance he saw, more and more blood running down the blade of his lance with each strike. Loqi couldn’t take his attention off the creature long enough to follow Cor’s movements, but he could hear the wet sound of his blade sinking into flesh and his heavy breathing as he avoided the flailing limbs.

Just like with the demons in Galdin Quay, Loqi and Cor didn’t need to communicate as they fought together. Each took a side, alternating attacking and distracting the creature, their styles of combat complementing each other to keep the demon off balance. It seemed to be mostly blind, following the sounds and vibrations of Loqi’s movements, but up close it snapped and grabbed at Loqi even when he was silent, able to sense his body in front of it. 

Between himself and Cor, Loqi started to feel confident in their chances. Cor pressed closer into the creature’s space and Loqi saw in his peripheral vision as Cor sliced off another of the demon’s arms; his katana glinting with blood in the moonlight. With a guttural cry the creature swung its head distractedly toward Cor and Loqi managed a well-placed strike to creature’s face, his blade slicing through its milky eye to leave it howling in pain. The demon turned its attention back on Loqi and advanced, angry and hurt, low inhuman sounds bubbling from its gullet. In its fury the demon lunged mindlessly at Loqi who ducked and managed to raise his lance at the last moment so the beast impaled itself, the blade driven deep into its ribs. 

Undaunted, the creature reared back again, the lance imbedded so deeply in the demon’s skin that it pulled it easily from Loqi’s fingers. It continued to advance on Loqi and forced him to retreat backwards until with a sinking comprehension Loqi realized he’d been backed up to the edge of the chasm.

And Loqi knew he needed to get away from the edge, could feel the cold air from the rift pulling at his sleeves and the hem of his jacket. He felt a little light-headed with the empty void of air yawning behind him and all his instincts screamed for him to grab his weapon and move. Loqi went to yank his lance from the demon’s innards only for his fingers to slip on the slick blood coating the pole. Loqi gave a gasp of surprise as the empty tug tipped him off balance, and the step he took to stabilize himself was on to nothing. There was a single fraction of a moment where silence overtook Loqi, his stomach and heart felt weightless and he thought maybe he heard his name. Then Loqi fell, dropping straight into the abyss and it was so sudden he couldn’t even scream.

Then Loqi’s arm was wrenched upwards, his shoulder suddenly filled with blistering fire as the muscles and tendons pulled and stretched beyond their limit. Loqi snapped his head up to see Cor gripping his wrist, straining to pull Loqi back up over the edge. He also saw the demon rearing up to bear down on Cor as he was defenseless with his back to the creature. Loqi pushed past the pain to swing his other arm up to grab at jutting rocks, his scrabbling feet finding footholds to help push himself back onto solid ground.

As soon as Loqi had both knees over the edge Cor was up again, katana back in hand and countering the arms that reached for him and the jaw that snapped at him. He shouted back for Loqi to stay quiet and not move and he had the lumbering beast following his every move as he trailed the edge of the chasm, luring it away from Loqi.

Loqi watched on feeling useless, every movement of his arm sent a twisting bolt of pain through his nerves and he knew he’d be no help one-handed. On top of that his only weapon was still protruding from the demon’s guts. His heart leapt into his throat and Loqi couldn’t swallow it down; he had been so incredibly close to death that his limbs were still quaking with the anticipation of it. Loqi tried to take deep breaths to calm himself, but his heart refused to quiet while Cor was still in danger.

Loqi could see that the demon was becoming more desperate, it was worn down and bloody, several gashes spilling pink and yellow innards Loqi had no desire to identify. It was missing several arms, but still reached uselessly for Cor, the bleeding stumps leaking on to the dirt. Cor had the upper hand as he circled around the demon, his slashes pinning the demon against the edge. When the creature’s tail segment backed over the ledge it gave a squeal of furious surprise and dove to the side, digging madly at the dirt to retreat and save itself. Panting, Cor surged forward and drove his katana completely through a segment of the demon’s abdomen, halting its progress as it screamed out into the night.

Cor wrenched his katana free, a gush of dark blood spraying over Cor and the demon both. Loqi could see the cool indifference on Cor’s face, the smears of fresh blood and the hard set of his jaw. Loqi’s heart was still pounding from the adrenaline, but the sight of Cor made it skip a few beats as well, his chest feeling like it was caught in a snare.

Realizing it couldn’t escape, the demon reared back again flailing, screaming in mindless pain and anger. Cor took his chance and rushed forward, sinking his katana into the demon’s torso and pulling down, slicing through skin and muscle and viscera. The demon’s arms flew to its abdomen to try and hold the halves of its belly together, skin and muscles slapping wetly as it attempted to contain its own innards. The demon staggered back, screaming and blinded by pain, only for its back half to stumble from the ledge, the heavy segments pulling its torso as well. The demon dropped its arms to grab weakly at the edge for purchase, but its back half dragged it down. 

And with that the thing was gone. It gave one last horrible dying screech as it tumbled down into the abyss, its long, segmented body splitting further as it smashed into rocks along the way. Cor inhaled shakily, the emotionless mask broken as he bent over and rested his hands on his knees to catch his breath. Loqi sighed brokenly in relief and struggled to pull himself up, the pain of his shoulder intensifying now that the surge of adrenaline had subsided with the creature’s death. 

“You all right?” Cor called over, lifting his head in Loqi’s direction to give him a once over.

“I’ll survive,” Loqi bit out, unable to tamp down on the grin curving his lips. “You’re the one panting, old man.”

In return Cor let out a breathless bark of laughter and gave Loqi a look that was all heat and promise. “Come over here and say that.”

Loqi’s heart rolled in his chest, aching to continue from where they’d left off so abruptly. He finally made it to his feet but before he could move the ground gave another muted groan and lurch. Loqi’s face fell and he could feel the panic rising in his throat as he met Cor’s eyes, only for the ground beneath Cor’s feet to crumble, the ledge of the crag plummeting into the dark chasm and taking Cor with it.

Cor’s name was ripped from Loqi’s throat as he crossed the field and fell to his knees several paces from the loose soil and rock of the rift’s edge. Loqi crawled along a painstakingly slow path toward the edge, testing his weight with each movement and trying not to cry out as his dislocated arm bumped along the ground. He clung to the hope that Cor had grabbed on to a rock or fallen to a ledge; that he was still within grasp and Loqi would be able to pull him back over and everything would be fine. 

Loqi stretched out along the crumbling ground, steeled his nerves and peered over the edge…  
and there was nothing. Below him was nothing but a seeping, impenetrable darkness and a cold wind that stung the corners of his eyes. 

Loqi screamed Cor’s name into the chasm, his voice broken and swallowed up by the depths of the rift. He shouted Cor’s name until his throat burned and the arm holding him up shook from the strain. He finally pulled away from the edge and collapsed onto his back, an icy coldness spreading through his body as he lay prone. 

Cor was gone. The rational side of Loqi knew that no one could survive a fall that far. The Immortal’s body would crumple and split against the rocks just like that demon, his title a mockery as he bled out against the bottom of the crag. Loqi also knew that it was his fault. Cor had pulled him to safety, lured the creature away using himself as bait and unknowingly traded his own life for Loqi’s.

He felt numb. There were no words to describe the guilt and emptiness that stabbed through his insides. He had watched Cor die before his eyes and now he would need to return to the city and inform the Crownsguard that the Immortal was lying broken and bloody at the bottom of a chasm. 

Loqi wanted the earth to swallow him up; it really wouldn’t take much effort to roll over the edge, to join Cor and leave their deaths a mystery for Iris or Monica to agonize over. The temptation was fleeting and left him cold as he scrubbed at his face with his good hand, grinding his teeth together and tormenting himself with the thought of what Cor would say to see him like this. 

Loqi wanted to hear his voice, wanted to hear some stupid platitude Cor routinely used on the other hunters and glaives to encourage them, his words cliché but the passion behind them inspiring. Loqi wanted to see him again as he was in his mind: serious and imposing but with a lingering softness to his smile and a warm fondness in his eyes that never completely disappeared when he looked Loqi’s way.

But mostly Loqi wanted to know what would have changed between them if they’d had a few more minutes alone. His heart clenched at the loss, at the fact he would never know if what he felt was welcome or even reciprocated. The moment between them had seemed so significant, with the possibility of completely changing the trajectory of both their lives had it been allowed to continue. He could still feel Cor’s hand on his skin, and the permanent loss of it left him hollow. The hole it bore in his chest made it hard to breathe, the missed chance dragging him down into dark waters and drowning him.

Loqi instead staggered to his feet, giving one last look to the yawning darkness behind him before crossing the field to the car and opening the driver side door. Cor had left his phone in the center console and Loqi held it for a moment in his palm before sliding his thumb across the screen. Instantly Loqi felt his insides twist even further. He recognized Cor’s background as one of the photos they had taken from their night at the Quay.

In it the sun was almost set below the horizon, the sea reflecting the brilliance in reds and yellows; Loqi saw himself as he was that night, turned toward the sea and leaning heavily against the railing, mostly empty glass dangling from his fingertips. His hair was a splash of golden fire in the dying light, and Cor had caught him in profile as he had taken in the last bit of sunset. Loqi didn’t remember Cor taking the photo but it was real and poignant in his hand and Loqi had to take a moment to steady his breathing, resting his forehead on the cool metal of the doorframe.

Loqi brought up Cor’s contacts, scrolling until he saw Iris’ name. Of what he’d met of Iris, she had been kind and fair, and Loqi felt she deserved to know first. He really should call one of the other Crownsguard, someone like Monica who had authority among the city, but the thought of calling her first filled him with dread. He was weak and selfish and didn’t think he could handle telling her it was his fault. 

He tapped Iris’ name with his thumb and she answered on the second ring. Loqi froze and couldn’t force the words from his mouth, the lump in his throat strangling him. A few beats passed before she asked, “Is everything all right Cor?”

“No, it’s not.”

“Loqi? Is that you? What’s wrong? Where’s the Marshall?” And Iris’ voice became a little more piercing with each question as the alarm set in. Loqi exhaled deeply, regretting his choice now of calling Iris. Maybe one of the Crownsguard would have remained impassive, duty training them for this type of news.

“There was an accident. I mean... there was a demon. We fought it but it fell into the Taelpar Crag and took Cor with it. He’s gone.” His own voice cracked and Loqi heard Iris’ shaky little whimper, but to her credit she cleared her throat and her voice came out stronger than his own had been.

“Understood. A group will be there soon. Are you hurt?”

“You could say that.” 

“Okay. Just… just stay where you are.” Iris abruptly ended the call and Loqi was greeted by his own photo again. He couldn’t take the sight of it, reaching over to place it face down in the console. He sat down sideways in the driver’s seat, feet still planted on the asphalt in an attempt to ground himself. He felt weak and drained, unable to even hold himself up. He folded over himself, forehead on his arm and his arm on his knees, letting his other arm hang limply, numb fingers brushing against the ground. Loqi wasn’t sure how much time passed; only looking up at the sound of gravel crunching beneath tires, two other cars parking at the rest stop. 

Iris climbed out of the closer sedan, followed closely by an older woman in a leather jacket. He realized it was Monica. Her expression was carefully blank, but when she stood in front of Loqi and he looked up to meet her eyes, there was anger and pain thinly veiled there. 

“What happened?” Her voice was steady, but Loqi could hear the ache behind it, could also hear the accusation and blame as well. He explained a little of the demon and a little of what had happened before it had died. He couldn’t meet her eyes when he explained that Cor had killed the foul thing but it’s body had weakened the ground as it fell, causing the rest of the ledge under Cor’s feet to slide into the abyss as well.

Monica took the information as well as could be expected, she then stepped back and gestured to the ledge. “Show us exactly where he fell.”

Loqi did as he was asked, leading Monica and a few others through the dark to the crumbling ledge. The others had flashlights that illuminated the scene and even in the shadows Loqi could see the scars of their battle on the land. Blood and dirt and rocks scattered the entire field leading to the rift. It was messy and gruesome and chaotic and Loqi felt a spike of angered anguish that Cor had met his end here. He had deserved so much better.

Monica spoke a few quiet words to her companions before turning back to give her attention to Loqi. 

“We’ll be driving down to the bottom of the gorge. Stay here and Ana will tend to your wounds.” She pointed to another woman who was leaning against one of the cars alongside Iris.

With that Monica and three others left, leaving Loqi alone with Iris and Ana. The latter sat him down and gently peeled off his jacket so she could get a better look at his arm and shoulder. Loqi glanced over to see that the muscles had already bruised purple, livid against his pale skin. 

“I’ve gotta get it back in before you do permanent damage to it.” Ana told him in that twangy accent he’d only ever encountered before with Cindy. He nodded his assent tiredly, just wanting the throbbing pain to subside and to get some feeling back in his numb fingers. 

“Alright then, grit your teeth.” Ana gripped his arm hard, the pulling and maneuvering of his shoulder to pop it back in its socket a method of torture in itself. The relief when it finally ground in to place was palpable. But without the distraction of overt physical pain, Loqi was left now only with his grief.

Time dragged as Loqi waited for Monica’s group to return. The three sat in tense silence, only interrupted when a car pulled up next to them a couple hours later. Monica exited and stood in front of Iris, her face carefully guarded but her body language screaming her despair.

“There’s no entrance to the bottom of the crag, it’s sealed as far as we could drive. It looks impossible to breach.” Monica’s voice was tight and controlled. “The best we can do is send climbers with equipment down at first light. But the most we can hope for with that is to recover his body.”

Iris gave a choked little sob, burying her face in her palms. She mumbled Cor’s name into her hands a few times before looking up at Monica with watery eyes. 

“Can we go back to the city now? I…I need to call Gladdy. He should know.”

Monica nodded, offering Iris a hand up and holding her tightly. After she’d helped Iris into the backseat Monica turned her attention back to Loqi. 

“You’ll be under supervision until I can figure out what to do with you.”

Loqi gave her a pained look, inflamed with the truth of what she was suggesting. “You’re blaming me. You think I did this on purpose.”

Monica chewed the inside of her lip, her eyes hard behind the glassy sheen of grief. “I think I need more answers. And I think I was right in not trusting you in the first place.”

She gestured to the car Iris was in before climbing into the driver seat of Cor’s car and turning the keys.

“They’ll take you back.” She said with finality before closing the door and reversing Cor’s car, a spray of gravel signaling her departure as she pulled onto the road to take it back to Lestallum.

…

Loqi was escorted by several hunters through the streets back to the refugee camp. It surprised him that Monica hadn’t straight up imprisoned him, but perhaps that was still to come after she decided on a suitable punishment for Loqi getting the Immortal killed. She had been right all along. He had agonized over the accusation that it was his fault Cor was dead and yet he knew the truth of it. Cor had saved Loqi and died in his place, it had been a delayed reaction but the truth ground into his heart like a boot against broken glass. 

Loqi wondered if it was some sort of cosmic joke being played on him. After so many years of hating Cor and knowing that he would have killed the man himself if given the chance, he was wrecked now by his death. The loss left him empty, not just from losing the friendship they’d discovered and built over the last couple of weeks, but by the entire lifetime of fixation Loqi had spent on Cor. He had known of Cor his entire life and now he was simply… gone.

The hunters led Loqi to one of the smaller buildings that had been converted into a refuge. There were only about a dozen cots set up on the floor and it was empty besides Loqi and his detail. The two hunters hunkered down in a corner, ignoring Loqi but still keeping a watchful eye. So Loqi did what he had to: he cradled his arm to himself, curled up on one of the cots, closed his eyes, and waited. 

Loqi wasn’t sure how many hours passed before the hunters deemed he was asleep and stepped out of the building, their voices drifting in from just outside. It was all the freedom he needed as Loqi sneaked through the back rooms of the building until he found a window large enough to escape out. Loqi gave a quick glance around to make sure he hadn’t been detected before he darted into an alleyway. He knew that escaping like this would only make him appear guiltier in Monica and the rest of the Crownsguard’s eyes, but he’d be damned if he let them claim he killed Cor on purpose.

After stalking through the streets, keeping to the shadows to avoid other people, Loqi found himself in a quiet part of the city, a block of small unassuming apartments in front of him. He had meant to find a sparsely guarded area of the gate so he could slip through into the night, and yet here he was. With a sinking feeling Loqi knew he didn’t even need to question why his wandering had brought him here. Cor had told Loqi before where he lived and the address had burned itself into his mind. He counted along the numbers on the doors until he stood in front of Cor’s. Loqi looked around uneasily, checking the area for any other people, and only when he was sure he was alone did he pull a skinny flip knife from his belt, sliding the tip into the keyhole.

Twenty minutes later found Loqi inside Cor’s apartment, his back to the door and feeling an aching tiredness deep down to his core. He felt as though he’d held his breath the entire time he’d picked the lock, just waiting for someone to stumble upon him and alert the authorities. 

Inside, Loqi drifted through the apartment aimlessly, running his fingertips along the wall as he walked, stone silent as he peeked through doorways and windows. Cor’s apartment was sparse and minimal. The hallway through the center connected all the rooms: a small tidy bathroom, kitchen with a table by the window, a barely furnished living room, and a bedroom that held the only signs of the apartment even being occupied. Cor had said himself he didn’t spend much time in his apartment or the city itself, but Loqi saw no photos or paintings or anything that would give the apartment a spark of Cor’s personality.

After exploring, Loqi returned to the bathroom and stripped out of his clothes, the filth and blood on them leaving a mess on the tile floor as he kicked them to the side.

Stepping into the shower, Loqi turned the knobs, letting the spray wash the dirt and grime and blood from his skin. After scrubbing himself raw Loqi twisted the knob and turned the shower as hot as it would go. The spray scalded his skin violently red, but he still felt cold, the shower unable to wash away the guilt and grief that felt like ice water running through his veins. He stood there until the water ran cold and only then did he dry off, towel wrapped around his shoulders like a child as he walked back to Cor’s bedroom. 

Cor’s bed was large to accommodate his height, neatly made with grey sheets, a navy blue comforter and a pile of pillows thrown against the headboard. The only other furniture in the room was a wooden dresser and a heavy trunk at the foot of the bed. Opening one of the drawers of the dresser revealed carefully folded shirts; Loqi took one and unfolded it, and before he could help himself he lifted the fabric to his face and inhaled, his heart instantly dropping into his stomach at the soft smell of Cor that lingered on his clothes.

Loqi pulled the shirt over his head; it was much too large, the hem falling mid-thigh and the neckline dipping below his collarbones, but Loqi felt better wearing it. He wanted something Cor had touched against his skin. He closed the drawer and turned to the trunk, dropping down on his knees to unhook the latch and lift the heavy lid. 

Inside were the personal effects the apartment was missing. At the very top were a couple pictures of Cor with the Prince and his friends, a few taken in the desert and one a group shot where surprisingly Loqi recognized almost everyone in it. Underneath those were several photos of a much younger Cor with the former King and former Shield and others he might have recognized from his debriefs on high ranking Lucian officials. There were a couple slim, leather bound books that might have been journals, a medal with the crest of Lucis on it, and a beret, flattened carefully for storage.

Loqi suddenly felt guilty for prying and he gently closed the lid of the trunk; despite wanting to be more to Cor, it didn’t give him the right to paw through Cor’s personal items now that he was dead.

So Loqi stood and went to the bed and he suddenly felt more tired than he could ever remember being in his life. His body felt heavy and lifeless and Loqi just wanted to sleep so that he didn’t have to consciously feel anything any longer. 

Loqi pulled back the covers and climbed into Cor’s bed, sheets cold against his skin. He wrapped the blankets tightly around himself and pressed his face against Cor’s pillow, breathing deeply and hoping to catch a soft hint of Cor’s scent. It was the scent of the wild, of leather and metal and the forest at night, of clean soap and sweat and some whispering essence of something the world would never know again. 

Loqi took a shuddering breath against the pillow.

And only there, in Cor’s empty bed, did Loqi finally break down.


	4. Chapter 4

One moment Cor was standing at the edge of the crag, the demon screeching its dying bellow below, Loqi a distance away, hurt but alive; the next he felt the ground crumble beneath his feet, tipping him off balance and plummeting him into the yawning blackness below. Distantly he heard his name ripped from Loqi’s throat and echoing against the chasm. 

There was a split second of panic before he slammed into a ledge, his body crumpling, the collision knocking the wind out of him. His hands shot out as he slid along, fingers scrabbling for any purchase among the rocks, the stones and grit slicing his fingertips to ribbons and peeling back his fingernails in an agonizing burst of pain. For one triumphant moment Cor caught a handhold on the edge, only to lose it when it slipped out of his bloody fingers, his body once again pitching over the side and sending him into freefall.

Cor knew this time there was no surviving this. He was a few seconds away from being a bloody smear on the canyon floor; after thirty years of surviving the impossible and improbable, falling down a gorge would be what finally did him in. He closed his eyes against the inevitability, breathing raggedly to try and calm himself for the impending certainty of his death.

In his last moments Cor thought about what he was leaving behind: his friends, the Crownsguard, the hope of the Prince returning. Mostly he thought of Loqi, of his blonde hair and smart mouth, of his ceaseless questions and crippling insecurity hidden behind false bravado, of his soft eyes and knowing smile. Cor had already admitted to himself he was enamored, and now as he plunged to his death, not knowing what Loqi felt for him in return would rank highly on his list of regrets.

From above he heard Loqi’s screaming echo bounce against the rocks, but the darkness and the distance made him impossible to locate. Cor sent up a simple plea of apology, hoping Loqi would still be able to find a place in Lucis even without his help.

With a last shaky inhale Cor braced himself for impact.

Only for it to never come. The wind rushing past Cor lessened, and when he opened his eyes to try to make sense of the situation he saw himself enveloped in a pale blue glow that had slowed his plunge to the bottom. A moment later Cor felt solid ground beneath his feet as he was gently set down, and it took every bit of willpower to keep standing on legs that felt like rubber. After a moment to collect his thoughts, Cor prodded cautiously at the ribs and hip that had taken the brunt of his collision into the ledge. The pain was intense at his touch, but dulled to a steady ache that he could easily ignore. He would be covered in bruises and he’d lost more than a little skin off his fingers, but he was alive and whole when he should be nothing more than pulp. Just when Cor began to wonder how he’d cheated death again, the answer came in the form of a steady, deep voice Cor recognized instantly.

“Cor Leonis,” The voice lingered in the air as he spoke Cor’s name, the timbre ageless and smooth as it echoed through the chasm and through his head. “How many times will you trespass on my domain?” 

Cor exhaled a nervous laugh, the high of adrenaline still coursing through his veins. “I guess that depends on how many times you let me leave alive.”

He made an unimpressed sound, “You test my patience, _Immortal_. As well you test the boundaries of your own name. Why are you here?”

“An accident,” Cor heard himself say. “A demon caused me to fall in here.”

“You did not enter my realm through conventional means, but you have entered it nonetheless.” There was a long pause of silence and Cor could do nothing but wait in the darkness. “You have held my interest since you first set foot in my domain. The recklessness of youth caused you to seek me out once and each return henceforth has found you older, yes, but perhaps no wiser. So I am done being benevolent, there shall be consequences for disturbing me yet again.”

Cor groaned internally, wondering if he’d been spared of one death only to be handed another. “What would you have me do?” 

And there was a long, pondering moment of silence before Gilgamesh answered: “I would have you finish what you began thirty years past.”

A little past where Cor was standing suddenly a sliver of orange light shone from a crack splitting the solid rock. As Cor watched on it fractured and gaped open, a doorway appearing that lead deeper into the ground. Cor wasn’t left with much choice, so he ducked into the crevice and walked further into Gilgamesh’s domain.

The crevice widened further and further until Cor found himself in the entrance hall, a chill of anticipation sliding down his spine. He felt much like he had the first time he’d set foot in this hall, nervous and headstrong, determination roiling in his gut.

Cor felt unprepared, he remembered his own first attempt at the trials in vivid detail, how his heart had pounded against his ribs, how hot beads of sweat had ran down his neck, how despite the fear a wave of excitement had gripped his insides, squeezing tight. Now Cor was left with a stony tranquility, blanking his mind from all distractions as he moved past the great hall and stepped onto the road leading to the chamber of the first trial.

Time seemed to pass differently in the halls below the surface; the passage of time elastic and malleable. The hall seemed to be dark from one angle then bright as day from another and each step was plagued by the surrounding whispers bubbling up from the half desiccated corpses littered throughout the passage. Cor went forward with a single-minded determination, only slowing as he reached the opening to the chamber.

Gilgamesh’s voice faded into the background as Cor entered the trial, fingers tight on the grip of his katana. Around the cave Cor could see several beasts look up at his entrance then bare their teeth, claws scraping against the stone floor. Behind them in the shadows the glow of dozens of pairs of eyes blinked, more approaching from crevices and cracks in the walls. Cor took in a deep breath, released it, and let the beasts come to him. 

…

Cor sat next to a small fire, painstakingly cleaning his katana with a piece of cloth he had ripped from his shirt. His body felt like lead, heavy and stiff. It had felt like the waves of creatures that spilled into the first trial chamber would never subside and Cor had functioned on autopilot, letting his instincts take over, his mind thinking of nothing beyond survival. It had worked for the most part, Cor escaping the first trial with little more than superficial bites and scratches. Cor’s main concern was his exhaustion. Falling as he had had left him without supplies or provisions and Cor felt weak, hunger gnawing at his gut. Spring water trickled down the rocks into clear pools so Cor wasn’t worried about dehydration, but his body was only going to get weaker with each swing of his sword.

Cor curled up close to the fire, hoping it would keep away any creatures prowling about so that he could at least rest for a few hours, his exhaustion pulling his eyes closed and his body slack.

As he laid there listening to the sound of his stomach as he drifted off, Cor thought if he managed to complete the trials and return to the city that he’d ask Loqi his favorite meal and cook it for him. 

What might have been five minutes or several hours later, Cor woke with a start, his fire burned low and a cold breeze freezing him through the tatters of his shirt and jacket. He’d never done well in the cold, much preferring the heat of the desert and the city. It was the reason he was almost never seen without his jacket, his body craving the warmth. Being underground with little to no fire had left a chill deep in Cor’s bones he couldn’t seem to shake. 

Cor pulled himself to his feet slowly, figuring that walking and fighting would be the easiest way to warm his muscles. Cor kicked dirt over the embers and then climbed toward the next passage, the twisting path following the carved rock of the crag. Cor needed to take more breaks on this leg of the journey, his body exhausted as the path spiraled upwards, the rocks slippery and unforgiving. 

Each break left Cor dismayed at himself, at the weakness he’d never allowed himself to feel or show over the years. He had never appreciated his moniker, but he made sure he’d lived up to it, and that included hiding his pain, his scars and never letting himself be defeated again. It was almost poetic justice for Cor to be struggling so badly here where his story had begun and he had gained the reputation that had followed him his entire life.

Cor took a last breather leaned against the rock wall next to the opening leading to the second trial. He looked out over the wide chasm before him, sunlight filtering through the canopy to shine on the rocks and crystals threaded through the terrain. It would be beautiful if the whole place wasn’t tainted with death and blood and ancient anger. Instead the entire chasm felt like a tomb, the air heavy with pain and loss and death.

Cor pushed himself off from the rock, mentally preparing himself for the next round of his trial. He entered the crevice, the rock sealing shut behind him and the creatures inside taking immediate notice of his presence. Cor knew this would be even more difficult than the last trial, so he rushed in, blade swinging, not wanting to waste any more time.

…

The second trial went much like the first one, Cor fighting back wave after wave of beasts, his mind telling him what to do, but his body unable to keep up with the demand. He limped away from the second trial bruised and battered, his body so weary his fingers shook as he attempted to start a fire. 

When he finally had a little orange blaze warming his cold, tired body, Cor let himself stretch out and relax for a moment, his thoughts turning to Loqi. He wondered idly if he was safe back in Lestallum and what had happened to him when he’d returned without Cor at his side. Nothing good, he was sure. Monica had already had her doubts about their trip in the first place, and Cor hoped she’d be fair and understanding, instead of the strong fist of justice he worried she’d be.

Cor turned to the fire, curling inwards and drifting off, his exhaustion pulling him into a deep, dreamless sleep.

Cor awoke hours later in the dark to cries and howls rising from the lower levels of the chasm. The creatures and beasts and spirits in the crag were restless and hunting through the darkness, the cacophony of their mingled voices haunting.

Cor dragged himself to his feet, crossing the rest of the stone path to reach the cavern containing the third trial. The gaping entrance in the rock loomed over him and Cor felt as though he had nothing left, but he pressed on, entering the fissure in the rock and slashing mindlessly at any creature that jumped at him. 

…

Cor let himself rest before climbing the final staircase, the breeze through the chasm cooling the sweat on his brow. The wind brought with it the scent of trees and fresh air and Cor took a deep breath, wanting to smell anything other than soil and blood and decay that lingered on him from the lower levels. Cor was so close to the surface, but the most difficult part of the trial was still ahead, waiting on a bridge in the sunlight. 

Cor had made it this far, but his body was exhausted after so many hours of fighting and hiking and food deprivation. To survive Gilgamesh and complete this unfinished chapter of his life was something Cor wasn’t sure he’d be able to do. The sobering thought made Cor meditate on his own mortality. He had always walked the thin line between life and death, and where others had fallen Cor had always managed to rise. His rematch here was thirty years in the making, and sometimes to Cor it seemed as though all those years he was simply living on borrowed time.

As Cor looked up the passage that would lead him to Gilgamesh, he thought one final time of Loqi. He thought of Loqi the first time they’d ever met in battle, seven years earlier; Loqi fresh from the academy, a sweet faced hothead with a chip on his shoulder and something to prove, and Cor already jaded by war, the years of battle leaving Cor unmerciful and unforgiving. Loqi had sought him out specifically, had challenged him loudly before attacking, his blade shining clean and untested in his hands.

The duel was nothing to Cor, like striking down an arrogant child, leaving Loqi lying panting and wide-eyed on the ground, useless with his lance kicked away. Cor stood over him, katana raised, eyes blank.

Then Cor saw something in Loqi, in the defiant glint of his eyes, in the panicked rise and fall of his chest like a cornered animal. And Cor stuck his katana in the ground at his feet, for some reason unwilling to kill the young man in front of him, unable to shed his blood further.

“If you leave me alive I will never stop hunting you, Leonis.” Loqi growled, eyes flashing in bitter anger. He grit his teeth together, and ran shaking fingers through his short sweaty hair, leaving the blonde locks bloody. “I will be the death of you one way or another.”

“You’re welcome to try.” And Cor took one last look at Loqi, at the indignant expression, the sneer of his bloody lips and then he was gone, off to find more Empire chattel to stick his blade through that didn’t have piercing green eyes and tenacity that rivaled his own.

Loqi had made good on his word since that day, he had never ceased his relentless hunt of Cor, and now as Cor stood at possibly the last fight of his life, the rest of Loqi’s threat hung heavy in the air. 

Cor sighed and started up the winding stone staircase; live or die it was time to face Gilgamesh.

At the top of the steps he stood, silent and stoic, waiting halfway across the bridge separating his domain from the exit to the surface. Cor approached him warily, the weariness in his bones making it difficult to even lift his feet.

“Once more we meet face to face, Cor. I will admit to being curious if age and experience has honed your blade any since we last faced one another.”

“Only one way to find out.”

And then Cor’s katana was in hand as he rushed Gilgamesh, their blades meeting with a clash and spark. Cor took the offensive, knew he couldn’t let the battle draw out or he’d lose easily, his body succumbing to his fatigue. 

Gilgamesh’s form was smooth and sure as he spun away from Cor’s attack, their swords sliding away with a metallic ring. Cor didn’t pull back, surging forward relentlessly and pressing Gilgamesh back.

Cor’s muscles screamed in protest and he could feel the tremor in his arms each time their blades met. Yet for every strike Cor managed to land on Gilgamesh’s skin, the spirit gave him back double, his blade coated in Cor’s blood. 

“If you continue like this you will never leave my domain.” And Gilgamesh twisted his wrist, sword sliding up, the blade flashing across Cor’s cheek and leaving a stinging slice below his eye. Cor’s hand flew to his face instinctively, fingertips smearing the fresh trickle of blood. He knew Gilgamesh was right, knew that he would die from a thousand cuts because the spirit would wear him down, never needing to take the killing blow because Cor’s determination would fuel his own destruction.

Cor had to switch tactics, had to be more than the reckless youth Gilgamesh remembered him as, had to be more than the failure turned away, earning life but not respect or strength. Taking a deep breath Cor raised his katana, eyes locked on Gilgamesh as he went for the kill, his blade aimed for Gilgamesh’s chest. The spirit parried easily, swords locked together as Cor threw his weight behind the blade.

Cor knew he didn’t have much left in him, no longer had the endless stamina of youth or the unmatchable strength of a man in his prime. Flayed bare as he was Cor could only rely on the one skill he’d kept sharp his entire life; his ability to survive.

So locked against Gilgamesh, steel sliding against steel, the length of both blades aimed against their hearts, Cor did the only thing he could think of and vanished his katana from his hand. Gilgamesh was thrown off balance by the sudden loss of resistance and his sword slashed deep into Cor’s chest. The wound stung distantly but it didn’t distract Cor as he dropped his arm and re-summoned his katana, driving it straight through Gilgamesh’s gut and twisting the blade.

Time seemed to stop for a moment as reality set back in; Gilgamesh took a step back and Cor vanished his katana again, leaving a gaping hole in the spirit’s abdomen. Gilgamesh lowered his sword arm and covered the wound with his hand before dropping to one knee and hanging his head.

Keeping an eye on Gilgamesh, Cor reached up to pull the tattered collar of his shirt from his chest. The wound gushed blood down his chest and abs, but it hadn’t gone deep enough to reach bone; it would heal and Cor would simply be left with a scar. He almost laughed because he should have expected this souvenir after watching Gladio receive a similar one. Pressing his shirt back against the wound to staunch the bleeding, Cor turned his attention back to Gilgamesh. 

“You’ve completed the trials and did not disappoint. Perhaps you’ve earned your name yet.” Gilgamesh’s voice was colored with respect and satisfaction. He then stood from where he’d knelt on the ground, the hole in his body and armor already gone. He stepped aside to reveal the worn stone stairs twisting up to the surface. 

“You’ve earned your passage. You have also proven yourself worthy of my strength and of keeping your life yet again. You may return to the surface, as I have seen glimpses of what waits for you there and you will need all the strength you can muster to face what comes ahead in the darkness.” Gilgamesh stared at him through the slits of his mask, his gaze ephemeral and otherworldly. “Perhaps you did not have the strength to protect your Prince, but you can protect his people, as there is no King without a Kingdom.” 

Gilgamesh let his words sink in. “There is nothing more for you here, Cor Leonis, do not return again.”

Cor didn’t need to be told twice, he bowed his head to Gilgamesh as he passed by and began his ascent. 

…

Cor climbed the last few steps leading away from the bridge and Gilgamesh, the exhaustion he felt seeping deep into his bones. He was dirty, bruised, and bloody, yet miraculously still alive. It was the third time he had walked away from the yawning pit of earth Gilgamesh had claimed for his own, and after thirty years he had finally emerged victorious. When Cor pulled himself up over the final ledge leading from the crag he crawled a few feet and collapsed to the ground, sprawled over wet grass and inhaling deep lung-fulls of fresh night air. 

As he laid there catching his breath, it occurred to him that he had no idea how much time had passed since he had fallen into Gilgamesh’s lair. Time during the trials had seemed liminal, endless. Countless waves of creatures had poured out to test his skills and his stamina was pushed to its limits, his body running on adrenaline and the need to push forward. Although he was stronger and more calculating this time around, his reaction time was poorer and after taking so many hits and losing so much blood, Cor was feeling his age. 

The years since his last trial had taught him the value of caution and self-preservation but compared to the headlong determination of his youth and the impressive way Gladiolus had bulled through his trials, he knew that it had taken him much longer to complete. And on top of the grueling trials, the few hours of sleep he managed to get curled beside campfires only served to give him a disorienting vertigo feeling of being stuck between vigilance and fatigue. That fatigue had followed him to the surface as well and he worried he wouldn’t be able to hold off anything stronger than a goblin in this state.

Luckily Lestallum loomed close by, bright and inviting against the surrounding darkness. Cor felt an overwhelming pull to return to the city, to the lights and the sounds and the relative safety within its walls. But he’d be lying to himself though if he tried to say safety was the only reason he needed to return to the city. 

_Loqi_.

Cor hadn’t allowed himself to think much on Loqi while he fought below the surface. His mind was focused purely on survival, on avoiding claws and swords and fangs while simultaneously running his katana through anything with a pulse. Only when he was curled up in one of his make shift camps, his heart still racing and the breeze drying the sweat on his neck did he let his mind drift to his unlikely companion. Each time he stopped to rest Cor wondered the same thing, if Loqi was safe, if he had made it back to Lestallum on his own, injured as he was. The idea that perhaps Loqi had attempted to find a way down after him weighed heavy on his mind and had created an icy lump of worry in his gut that refused to thaw. It was almost foolish to think that someone as selfish as Loqi proclaimed to be would knowingly put himself in danger for Cor’s sake, yet when Cor summoned his memory of the few minutes before being attacked, the idea didn’t seem so outlandish.

There had been a moment between them, something tentative and delicate, but real all the same. He’d felt Loqi’s heart pounding under his fingertips, had seem him look up, eyes at first wide in surprise then relaxing into something soft and hopeful. Loqi was striking laid out beneath the moonlight, his blonde locks burnished silver, his arms still bent at the elbows laying slack at his side, hands open and trusting.

Cor hadn’t been able to control the stab of want that had coursed through him then; hadn’t been able to still the desire to feel Loqi’s skin below his fingers. He’d given in, his thumb sliding along the tight skin stretched over his collarbone, the simple touch not enough yet already far too much, a crack that threatened to unleash the dam. 

Cor had been knowingly tamping down on the fledgling thing between them, the multiple reasons for why it was wrong constantly shifting in the back of his mind. Between the age difference, Loqi’s background, and hell, the fact the world was in a darkening state of chaos and they could die any day, it didn’t seem right to acknowledge the nebulous attraction that pulled them together. But Loqi had wormed his way under his skin effortlessly; Cor’s thoughts were engulfed by him and he knew he could no longer hide the heat of his gaze any time his eyes landed on Loqi. Returning to the city and seeing Loqi would change something irreparably for them, and Cor’s heart thudded in nervous anticipation.

When Cor’s breathing and heartrate finally evened out, he raised to his feet, feeling like he could handle the couple mile hike back to the city. He kept quiet and kept his katana on hand, stealing through the darkness in the direction of the city lights, hoping for his sake that he’d slip by unnoticed by anything lurking in the gloom.

…

Cor had barely made it to the edge of the city when he heard the crank of the gate opening. Then Iris was sprinting under the streetlights and throwing herself in his arms, choking on her relieved sobs. Cor encircled her with an arm and pat her shoulder gently, trying not to wince as she pressed against the cut on his chest.

“I don’t know how you did it but I don’t care, you’re alive,” The eager words tumbled from Iris’ mouth and Cor gave her a tighter squeeze, glad to see her as well. 

“C’mon, let’s get back inside.” Iris tugged on the sleeve of his jacket like a child would; she was still sniffling, but her whole demeanor was excited relief. 

Once inside, Iris turned to him, looking over the cuts and bites and ripped filthy clothes. “It’s been three days since we heard about your fall. I can’t believe you survived.”

Three days. Cor wasn’t sure how surprised he was, the trial had felt like it had lasted a week between the sleep deprivation, the constant battling and the ever present gnawing hunger.

“Loqi called us and I went with Monica out to the crag, but her rescue team couldn’t find a way in. And the next morning several hunters climbed down from the top of the rift but couldn’t find you either, just… blood everywhere. No one really had any hope after that.” Iris frowned, trying to blink away the water threatening her eyes again.

“Loqi, how is he?”

“I don’t know. He was in a bad place that night,” She paused, chewing on the inside of her lip. “Monica put most of the blame of your death on him. He was supposed to be under supervision indefinitely but he slipped away that first night. No one’s seen him since; I’m not sure if he’s even still in the city.” Iris looked upset, scuffing her shoe along the ground. “I feel bad; I wasn’t thinking straight at the time, no one was. But it seems so obvious now that if Loqi had actually been at fault he never would have called us, would he?”

Cor’s heart pounded heavy in his chest. Loqi was gone, and if he’d left the city he had a three day head-start. 

“I need to find him.” 

Iris nodded. “I can help; this is my fault, too. I’ll start looking in the refugee camp; maybe he’s just lying low to avoid everyone. I wouldn’t blame him.” 

Cor thanked her, his voice low and distracted. If Loqi had left the city the possibility existed that Cor would never find him. That fact left his chest hollow and an icy feeling of regret gnawing at the base of his spine.

“I’ll start looking, you go ahead and get cleaned up, no offense but you really do look like a corpse like that. Anyone who sees you will think you’re a ghost.”

Cor gave Iris a small genuine smile and thanked her again.

“Don’t thank me until we’ve found him, Marshall.”

…

Cor’s apartment was pitch dark when he stepped inside. He usually left the entry light on to guide his way, so instead he felt along the hallway by memory and when he touched the bathroom door he immediately ducked inside. Cor stripped off the layers of filthy, blood-soaked clothes, grimacing when the dried blood pulled at his wound. Before searching for Loqi he needed to wash away the days of built up grime and sweat to even feel close to being able to face him again.

Cor twisted the shower knobs and stepped under the spray only to groan when he was pelted with ice cold water. Scrabbling at the knobs proved useless and he thumped his forehead a few times against the tile in defeat. After a few choice words he scrubbed as quickly and efficiently as possible. When he hopped out he was half frozen but mercifully clean. Cor gingerly pressed his fingers to the edge of the wound, drying the skin around it before tying his towel around his hips and pulling down another towel to rub absently at his hair.

Cor finally began to feel like himself again; traversing the rift had left him adrift, like an apparition stuck between states of being. An apt analogy since the whole of Lestallum still believed him dead. Shaking the thought, Cor felt his way to the next doorway down the hallway, entering the kitchen and searching his cabinets for something easy to eat to take away the pangs of hunger the three days of trials had left him with. Half a box of granola bars sated his stomach and Cor slipped from the kitchen, reaching down the hallway for the door leading to his bedroom.

Anxiousness curled in Cor’s heart as he wondered where Loqi was. Even though Iris had offered to help track Loqi down, Cor wanted to find him on his own; some perverse, curious part of him needing to see Loqi’s face when he realized Cor still lived. Even if his reaction was angry or volatile Cor felt the uneasy itch under his skin telling him to hurry and find him and not let him wallow in guilt any further.

When Cor finally stepped into his bedroom he realized he wasn’t alone in his apartment. His room was dark, but the soft lights of the city illuminated enough of the room to show a figure in his bed, curled up and sleeping. Cor’s heart pounded hard enough to hurt as he crossed the room, looking down at Loqi’s sleeping figure. 

He was achingly beautiful; his skin smooth and pale and clean hair lay still damp against the pillow. Suddenly the lack of hot water made sense, but all Cor felt was a warm rush of affection and the overwhelming desire to touch the soft planes of Loqi’s skin. Cor then noticed his own shirt was covering Loqi’s shoulders and the sight of Loqi in his own clothes turned that affection into a dark, heady pang of need that overwhelmed him.

Cor could barely control the longing that writhed beneath his skin, struggling to break free and pour forth. As gently as he could, Cor settled himself at the edge of the bed, reaching out with a tentative hand and placing it on the curve of Loqi’s hip, giving him a nudge somewhere between tender and desperate.

Loqi’s eyes fluttered open, taking a moment to focus. In the low light Cor saw the pain and disbelief wavering in Loqi’s eyes. He heard the shaky inhale and Loqi looked ready to bolt, to flee and hide. Cor pressed his hand more fully against Loqi’s hip, pressing him into the mattress and wishing the blankets weren’t in the way so he could feel Loqi’s skin, to ground and reassure him. Cor took in a deep breath to calm the fluttering anxiousness in his heart and gave Loqi a soft smile, his resolve steady even if this reunion didn’t go the way he hoped. 

But oh, he hoped.

“Hey,” Cor whispered, voice low and comforting.

Loqi’s reply was tentative and rough from sleep, but Cor had never heard anything sweeter than when his own name tumbled from Loqi’s lips, soft and hopeful like a promise.


	5. Chapter 5

“Cor.”

Loqi’s voice was unsure and hesitant; even if it didn’t feel like a dream, it was impossible for Cor to be in front of him, alive and whole. Yet Loqi could feel the dip in the bed where Cor sat, could feel the pressure of fingertips on his hip.

Loqi reached out uncertainly, fingers barely grazing Cor’s bare shoulder. 

“You’re really here,” He whispered in awe. “You really can’t be killed.”

“Not for lack of trying.” Cor said when Loqi’s fingers moved slowly across his skin, skirting the edge of the wound on his chest.

“Who did this to you?”

“A souvenir from Gilgamesh. He’s the reason I didn’t hit the bottom of the crag. He stopped me mid-fall and in exchange I had to complete his trials.”

“You finally beat him.” Loqi breathed, his fingers coming to rest on Cor’s arm over the shiny pink scars of his burns. “I knew you could.” Cor exhaled, low and amused.

“Only took thirty years.” 

Loqi’s eyes roamed over Cor, noticing the bruises and bites and cuts that littered his skin. His heart ached for Cor, he had so much to say and yet the words wouldn’t form on his tongue.

“It was my fault,” Loqi finally managed, a pitiful start to all the things he wanted to tell Cor, but the need to say it bubbled up and overflowed. “That you had to go through that. You fell because of me. I’m sorry.”

“I’m not.” Cor brought his hand up, fingers tentatively brushing Loqi’s wrist, soft and comforting. “I was only spared because Gilgamesh and I had unfinished business. If you had fallen instead…” Cor trailed off uncomfortably, his meaning clear. Loqi would not have been worthy and Gilgamesh would have let him die without sparing a thought. Once that fact would have infuriated Loqi, jealousy igniting his motivation, but after being emotionally drained for days on end, Loqi had nothing left in him but relief that Cor had returned.

“I’m glad you came back.” Loqi whispered looking up through his lashes to Cor’s face, “I couldn’t stop thinking about you.” 

Loqi let the truth come unbidden, his heart picking up its pace behind his ribs. The memory of their last moments in the field above the Taelpar chasm had never been far from his thoughts for the last three days; it had left him with the blaring agony of regret, leaving food tasteless, his mind numb, and his only desire to sleep. 

“And what did you think?” Cor’s voice was pitched low, his soft words fanning the flames running through Loqi’s veins.

“I thought of what I’d do if we’d had a few more minutes before that demon attacked.”

Loqi watched Cor’s breath quicken, his bare chest rising and falling, the shadows of the room sliding over his skin. He also saw the renewed spark in Cor’s eyes; as much as he’d tried to hide it, his hunger had bled through, a torrent that had become a flood threatening to drown him. Loqi didn’t think that he was wrong about what Cor wanted any longer, no longer thought that he was the only one with a confusing tangle of desire wound through his insides.

Loqi slid his hand back up Cor’s arm, his skin cool beneath his fingers. Cor’s only movement was the hand on Loqi’s hip, slowly following the dip of his waist to rest on his ribs. Loqi’s breath caught in his throat and all he could think was that the Universe had brought Cor back, sliced and scarred and bruised, _and yet still whole_, and if this was a second chance he would be a fool not to take it.

Loqi made up his mind and grabbed both ends of the towel still hanging around Cor’s neck and pulled him down, crashing their lips together, haphazard and frantic. Loqi had wanted this moment so badly, had imagined how Cor would feel, would taste; he was desperate and needy and he whined when Cor responded by deepening the kiss and taking control, pressing Loqi hard against the mattress. Loqi’s heart was pounding in his ears and his lungs were screaming for air when he finally pulled away, gasping for breath as Cor moved to kiss his jaw and neck, leaving a hot trail down the column of his throat. A moment of lucidity had Loqi pulling at the blankets between them, wanting the barrier gone, wanting the slide of skin on skin and Cor on top of him.

Cor pulled away and flipped the blankets back, crawling to rest on his knees between Loqi’s thighs. He untied the towel from his hips and tossed that as well and Loqi couldn’t help but stare at the rest of Cor’s body, tan and toned, his fingers aching to touch. Before he could, Cor’s hands skimmed up Loqi’s sides, his fingers tugging Loqi’s shirt up and over his head. Cor hesitated a moment before his callused fingers ghosted over the mottled bruise covering Loqi’s shoulder. 

“It doesn’t hurt,” Loqi whispered, coaxing Cor to continue, his fingers reaching out to roam over the hard muscles of Cor’s abdomen and wishing he could see better than the dim light allowed. “And it definitely won’t slow me down.”

Cor made a small sound of want as he settled between Loqi’s legs, supporting himself on his forearms as he kissed Loqi again and again. His tongue ran along the seam of Loqi’s lips until he parted them, Cor licking into his mouth until Loqi broke away gasping and moaning, writhing as he felt the hard press of Cor’s cock against his thigh. The only thing between them was Loqi’s boxers and even that was too much. He arched against Cor to touch him fully, craving the hard press of Cor’s body, so much larger and stronger than his own, and Loqi found he liked how Cor’s bulk of tan muscle contrasted with Loqi’s own pale skin and lean body. 

Cor moved to his neck again, leaving bite marks and sucking bruises that made Loqi squirm and gasp under him, fingers tugging helplessly at Cor’s hair to distract him.

“I want you so badly.” Cor leaned over to whisper in Loqi’s ear, his voice low and gravelly, a quietly desperate need in him Loqi hadn’t heard before. It made his heart flip weightlessly in his chest, his blood burning through his veins like acid.

“I want,” But Loqi was interrupted by a whine coaxed from his throat as Cor ran his tongue along Loqi’s ear, the sound of Cor’s soft breathy sigh in response sending an electric shock straight to Loqi’s cock.

“What do you want, Loqi?” And Cor’s voice was wrecked, low and needy and full of hunger. And what Loqi wanted was to hear Cor say his name like that again and again, wanted Cor’s hands on his skin, desperate and reverent, wanted to kiss him until his lungs burned and gave out.

“I want you inside me.” And it was the right thing to say because Cor moaned low and thick in his throat, burying his face against Loqi’s neck, cock impossibly hard as it twitched against Loqi’s thigh.

Cor kissed his way back to Loqi’s lips, pressing him deeper into the mattress with the force of his need. Cor pulled away to fumble in the drawer of his nightstand for a moment, moving back and shifting down to trail his lips along Loqi’s chest and stomach. His teeth nipped at the flat plane of Loqi’s navel and Cor dug his thumbs into the dips in Loqi’s hips, his fingers edging underneath the waistband of his boxers. 

Then Loqi was naked, stretched out and trembling against the sheets, Cor alternating between heated kisses and gentle bites to the soft flesh of his inner thighs. Loqi buried his fingers in Cor’s hair and couldn’t help the low, drawn-out whimper that escaped his throat when Cor finally pressed his tongue to Loqi’s cock, giving it several heavy wet licks before taking him entirely in his mouth. Loqi gasped and tugged at Cor’s hair, arching against his body, desperate for the heat and the friction. In turn, Cor’s broad hands settled on Loqi’s thighs, holding him down as he took what he wanted. Cor’s lips and tongue made Loqi’s toes curl and he felt his insides twist and coil with white hot hunger and need.

Then Cor pulled off of him and the sudden lack of wet heat made Loqi whine pitifully. As he watched, Cor licked his lip slow and purposeful, before reaching for the vial of lube, popping the cap and coating his fingers. Cor slid further down the bed and took Loqi back in his mouth, giving him small distracting licks along his cock as one of his slick fingers pressed into Loqi. 

Loqi felt the stretch as Cor slid a second finger into him, and it was almost too much when Cor crooked his fingers and rubbed against his insides, his cock still buried in Cor’s mouth.

“Cor,” Loqi mumbled brokenly, tugging Cor’s hair to drag him off his cock. “I’m good, please, I need…” Loqi’s voice trailed off into a gasp as Cor slid his fingers from him, his body feeling empty from the sudden absence.

“I’ve got you.” Cor whispered, leaning over Loqi to press him against the mattress with another deep, needful kiss. Loqi moaned against Cor’s mouth when he felt the hard line of Cor’s cock press against his ass; he shifted to get closer, the desire to have Cor inside him a visceral, instinctual need that left him panting and breathless. 

Cor leaned back, fingers dragging along Loqi’s torso as he spread Loqi’s thighs further. He coated his fingers with more slick before taking himself in hand and stroking, lining himself up with Loqi’s ass. 

Loqi whined with gasping need as Cor pressed into his body, stretching and filling him, burying himself as deep as possible with Loqi’s body doubled over from the force behind it. Loqi let out a shaky breath and Cor paused, letting Loqi adjust to the intrusion before he started to move.

All of Loqi’s nerves lit up as Cor fucked him, hard cock reaching the deepest depths of his insides, hands rough as he gripped Loqi’s hips hard enough to bruise, his lips trailing kisses and bites from neck to nipple. Loqi couldn’t concentrate on any one sensation, he felt out of control and for once it didn’t matter because he trusted Cor to take care of him. Loqi shifted and wrapped his legs tightly around Cor’s waist and it changed the angle enough that each hard drag of Cor’s cock had him gasping for air, his fingers scrabbling uselessly at Cor’s shoulder blades.

“There,” Loqi choked out, his fingers sliding up the back of Cor’s neck. “Don’t stop.”

Cor buried his face against Loqi, sinking his teeth into the juncture of shoulder and neck; he fucked up into Loqi’s guts, his pace making him pant against the pale hollow of Loqi’s skin. Loqi couldn’t believe the sounds that Cor ripped from him, tumbling over his lips mindlessly: the gasps and moans and Cor’s name over and over.

Cor dug his fingers into Loqi’s thighs, pressing Loqi’s legs further apart until he felt he would split; he whined low in his throat and squeezed his eyes shut, then he felt Cor’s fingers drift between them, touching where they were connected, his fingers ghosting over the stretched rim of his hole and sending a spark directly to his cock.

“Cor,” And Loqi was begging although he couldn’t form words past Cor’s name; instead he pulled Cor’s mouth to his own, hoping that the desperation and passion and need in his kisses could ask for what his voice couldn’t.

And then Cor’s tongue was in his mouth and his hand was on his cock, grip tight as he continued to fuck Loqi’s ass. It didn’t take long for Cor to draw Loqi’s climax from him; with a breathy gasp his body tightened and released, his cock leaving a wet spatter between their chests.

Loqi let his head fall back heavily on the pillow, but kept his grip tight on Cor’s hair and his legs crossed at the ankle behind Cor’s back. Cor was still moving in and out of him, but he was close, his eyes dark and needy, his fingers resting heavily on the base of Loqi’s throat. He pressed another hard kiss against Loqi’s lips and trailed to his ear, whispering in a heavy, wrecked voice:

“I want to come in you.”

It was a statement, but Loqi heard the question behind it, and it made his heart clench and pound in his chest. He pressed a soft kiss to Cor’s earlobe before whispering back.

“And I want you to.”

Cor dropped his forehead to Loqi’s shoulder and loosed a shuddering sigh, then hiked up Loqi’s ass and slammed into him, the pace making Loqi gasp and dig his nails into Cor’s back. Cor’s fingers were wrapped around the knobs of Loqi’s hips and Loqi felt it when Cor came, as he drove his cock as deep into Loqi’s body as possible, pulsing hotly against his inner walls. Cor dropped his head back into the crook of Loqi’s neck, panting hard, his breath hot against Loqi’s skin. When he’d caught his breath he pulled his cock free and collapsed on the bed next to Loqi, curling against him and pillowing his head on Loqi’s shoulder.

Loqi let his fingers drift through Cor’s hair, smoothing back the sweaty locks and pressing his lips to Cor’s temple.

“I’ve wanted to do that for longer than I should admit.” Cor mumbled against Loqi’s skin, his voice tired and his body sinking heavily into the mattress.

A dozen thoughts ran through Loqi’s mind at that comment, but Cor’s exhaustion was contagious so Loqi settled on just tipping Cor’s head up to meet him in another kiss, his thumb stroking back and forth along Cor’s cheekbone, careful to avoid the thin cut from Gilgamesh.

“I’m going to clean up before I fall asleep like this.” Loqi pulled away from Cor and stood up, his face flushing when he felt the warm slide of Cor’s come down the back of his thigh. Loqi rushed off to the bathroom, and when he returned a few minutes later, Cor was already asleep, sprawled out facedown. 

Loqi looked at him for a moment, his heart pounding uncertainly. Yes, they’d fucked, and it had been amazing and better than any fantasy Loqi had ever had about Cor, but at the same time it didn’t guarantee that Cor wanted Loqi to spend the night and wake up next to him. But Loqi didn’t want to leave, he wanted to feel the solid press of Cor’s body next to his, a reminder that he was still alive, that the universe had tried to take him but Cor had clawed his way back from the brink of death. 

Loqi sighed, picking the blankets off the floor. He spread them over the bed and Cor, and made his decision, sucking in a deep breath and climbing back onto the mattress, sliding under the covers next to Cor. He tried not to jostle him, but Cor stirred, mumbled tiredly and put an arm around Loqi’s waist, pulling their bodies close.

Loqi let out the deep breath and settled against Cor’s body and he smiled and enjoyed the embrace; his insecurity still bubbled below the surface of his skin, but not as frantically as before. He shut his eyes, falling asleep to the soft sound of Cor’s even breathing.

…

Loqi woke slowly, taking in a deep breath and blinking away the blurry sheen of sleep. The pale gold light of sunrise was spilling in through the blinds of the window and a clock ticked rhythmically from the corner of the room. Loqi was still in Cor’s apartment, still in his bed, and to his relief, still wrapped in his arms. The memory of the previous night left Loqi feeling giddy and unbalanced. It was still so new and raw that Loqi still feared Cor might think it had all been a mistake. Emotions had been running high since Cor had basically returned from the dead and understandably the desperation between them was palpable. The hunger he’d felt for Cor had been some dark, needful thing that left him panting and frantic and unable to hide his desire any further.

Loqi brought his hand up, fingers stroking softly down the arm thrown over his chest. He then thought better of it and lay still, afraid to wake Cor in case what had passed between them had only been some life-affirming desperation that Cor would ask him to forget. Even as he laid naked in Cor’s arms, his back pressed to Cor’s chest and their legs tangled together, the dread of rejection clawed up the back of Loqi’s mind.

He didn’t want the moment to end, but life rarely seemed to work the way Loqi expected and Cor woke and shifted against him, exhaling a soft sleepy sound into his hair. Loqi’s heart pounded painfully in his chest and with a hurt that tore and burrowed deep into his core he knew a single night of being Cor’s would never be enough.

“Morning,” Loqi attempted tentatively, summoning some of his boldness from last night and sliding his hand the rest of the way down Cor’s arm, lacing their fingers together.

Cor hummed an acknowledgment before burying his face against the back of Loqi’s neck, lips pressing hard against the skin he found there. Cor tightened the arm wrapped around Loqi and then moved their hands down, fingers dipping into his navel and over his lower belly until he had Loqi’s cock in hand, stroking him to hardness as the kisses to his neck grew more demanding.

And Loqi felt the relief and arousal flood into him, the cold worry staved off as Cor’s other hand slid into his hair and gripped, tugging his head to the side for easier access to his jaw and the column of his neck. Loqi let out a whimper as Cor bit along the chain of bruises he’d left the previous night. He tossed back his head, pressing his lips to any part of Cor’s face he could, his hand sliding down the valley of Cor’s waist and gripping his hip, pulling their bodies flush. Cor was already hard, sliding his cock along the seam of Loqi’s ass and pressing between his thighs.

“Fuck me again.” Loqi ground out, not intending to sound so desperate and needy, but definitely feeling desperate and needy. Cor exhaled raggedly in his ear before rolling Loqi onto his stomach, his hands moving down Loqi’s spine until he had a cheek of Loqi’s ass in either hand and spread him, Loqi’s hole pink and tender in the daylight. Cor dragged his fingers over Loqi’s ass, touch soft as a whisper when he brushed against the puckered skin, achingly gentle as he pressed a fingertip inside Loqi. 

Loqi held his breath expecting a sting of pain, but Cor’s finger slid in easily, his body still loose and prepared from the previous night. Cor pulled his hand away and took a moment to pat around and search for the lube, the vial a lump under the blankets. Cor slicked himself up and spread Loqi again, letting his thumbs pet over the soft skin before dipping inside, stretching Loqi’s hole open before sliding the head of his cock inside him.

Loqi gasped in surprise, his fingers gripping the sheets tightly. Cor let Loqi have a moment before he sunk the rest of his cock in Loqi’s ass and received a low heady moan for his efforts.

Cor was gentler this morning, sliding in and out of Loqi slowly, shallow strokes that rubbed Loqi’s insides and teased his rim which drove him wild and left him panting against the pillows. Loqi whined Cor’s name and tilted his hips, reaching a hand underneath himself to stroke his cock. 

“Harder, please,” Loqi begged into the pillow, chasing his climax and wanting Cor to fuck into him as desperately as he had last night. 

Cor pressed a trail of kisses up Loqi’s spine and then wrapped his arms around Loqi, pressing him into the mattress and fucking him hard enough to slam the headboard against the wall.

Loqi let his voice get away from him as he moaned into the pillows, loving the feeling of Cor’s body above him, his cock in him, the arm around his ribs and the hand that had slid up to grip the base of his neck. He’d never been so overwhelmed by someone, had never felt this level of longing, not just skin-deep but an aching need that he could feel in his bones. Loqi thought the same thing he’d thought earlier that morning, that only being Cor’s for a night would never be enough for him.

With a cry Loqi came in his hand, hot come spilling through his fingers and smearing over the blanket and his stomach. He was panting as Cor pressed his lips to the back of Loqi’s ear, his tongue sliding along the shell, Cor’s voice was low and Loqi shivered already knowing what Cor wanted to ask.

“Will you let me come in you again?” 

And Loqi’s eyes fluttered closed, his mouth hanging open as he thought how to answer because he wanted it again, it felt so intimate and so primal like Cor was claiming him as his own.

“Fuck,” Loqi whispered pressing his lips to Cor’s temple. “Fill me up with it.”

Cor made a sound from deep in his throat and fucked into Loqi, sinking his teeth into Loqi’s shoulder as he came, his hips jerking as he coated Loqi’s insides with his release.

Cor lay on top of Loqi for a few moments, before pulling free and rolling off him, taking a few moments to catch his breath before getting out of bed entirely.

Loqi remained on the bed, sprawled out and panting, sweat and come cooling on his skin. He felt sore and sated, although as he turned his head to watch Cor rifling through his dresser, a hot little feeling told him if Cor wanted to take him again he wouldn’t refuse. As Loqi slowly caught his breath he dragged his eyes over the muscles of Cor’s broad back and shoulders, the way his waist tapered down to strong hips and perfect ass.

“It’s unfair how attractive you are.” Loqi whined as Cor twisted toward him, revealing the hard definition of his chest and abdomen. Cor raised a brow in Loqi’s directions as he laid out his clothes.

“I think it should be obvious at this point I find you attractive as well.” And Loqi felt his cheeks color because he’d wanted Cor to say it out loud, even after a night of fucking, waking up in each other’s arms, and fucking again, Loqi still needed to hear from Cor’s own lips that he wanted Loqi, too.

“Don’t know how,” Loqi flashed a cheeky grin, gesturing broadly to himself. “I am in dire need of a shower.”

“You are. But you’ll also have to wait.” And then Cor grabbed his pile of clean clothes and ducked out the door and before Loqi could react he heard the bathroom door shut. Loqi hopped up, ignoring the sore twinge of his muscles and innards as he stalked down the hallway and pounded on the door.

“That was a suggestion for me to take a shower, not you,” Loqi called through the door after lowering his fist. “You’d better not use up all the hot water.” 

There was a pause before Cor answered. “If you start a pot of coffee I’ll consider it.” 

Loqi could hear the amusement in his voice and Loqi couldn’t help the warmth that spooled in his gut, overshadowing the annoyance. He agreed and went back to the bedroom. And because Loqi was still Loqi, he picked up Cor’s shirt to clean the smear of come off his stomach and thigh before pulling on his own boxers and another of Cor’s neatly folded shirts.

In the kitchen Loqi started the coffee machine, already familiar with Cor’s apartment after several days of hiding from the rest of the city within its walls. He pulled out two mugs from the cabinet above the sink and sat at the small table by the window, idly looking out over the first stirrings of people venturing onto the bare streets. After a few minutes of waiting impatiently for Cor, there was a knock on the front door.

Loqi knew there were a solid dozen reasons why he shouldn’t open the door, but he also had never been particularly good at listening to reason, especially when it came from his own head. So Loqi strode up the hall and opened the door to find Iris behind it, blinking up in surprise at him.

“Loqi! I’ve been looking for you all night,” As she spoke her eyes roamed over his face and took in the rumpled hair, bruised lips, Cor’s shirt, and most damning of all, the stark purple marks Cor had sucked into the skin at the base of his neck. “But I see the Marshall already found you.” She finished up lamely, flushing in embarrassment just as badly as Loqi did when the realization dawned on her.

“Yeah, he uhm, well,” Loqi trailed off, running his hand through his hair nervously. Cor chose that moment to emerge from the bathroom, dressed and toweling his hair, freezing when he spied the two at the door.

“Hello Marshall.” Iris gave a little wave, shifting her weight from foot to foot awkwardly. “I brought these back for you. Monica had them.” She held out his phone and car keys and when Cor came forward to take them from her Loqi decided to escape the situation. He mumbled an excuse and slipped into the bathroom, shutting the door and leaning heavily against it. He heard Cor and Iris talking quietly, but it was muffled and he couldn’t understand enough to justify eavesdropping. 

After his shower Loqi listened at the door again, only exiting when he heard silence. He found Cor sitting at the kitchen table nursing his mug of coffee. When he noticed Loqi he gestured to the other seat.

“So what did Iris say?” 

“Not much, she said she already informed Monica and a few other Crownsguard that I’d survived. She said Monica is probably already on her way over,” He gave Loqi an appraising view over his mug. “Although after she saw the state you were in I think her heads up became more of a warning.”

Loqi didn’t meet Cor’s eyes, pouring himself a cup of coffee and sliding into the seat next to Cor. Loqi mumbled an apology, chewing on the inside of his lip nervously. The gnawing doubt of insecurity plagued him again; he wondered if Cor hadn’t wanted anyone to know his preferences, if being involved with a former officer of the empire would reflect badly on him, or even if it would make the other Crownsguard see their entire trip together as a conflict of interest. The possibilities were endless and Loqi was only startled out of his thoughts by Cor laying his hand over his, thumb rubbing his knuckles, fingers tight in Cor’s grip.

“You’re thinking so hard I can hear it.”

Loqi finally looked up, his wet bangs falling in his eyes as he caught Cor’s gaze. “If I say it out loud it’s going to sound stupid.” Loqi protested.

“To be fair most of what comes out of your mouth is—” Loqi elbowed him before Cor could finish the thought, biting his lip to hide his smile.

“I’m worried I’m messing everything up already,” He buried his head in Cor’s shoulder, muffling his words. “It’s just, I think I really like you.”

There was a moment’s pause before Cor laughed, deep and gravelly above Loqi. Then Cor’s hands were on Loqi’s hips, pulling him over easily to straddle his lap. One hand stayed on his hip, thumb stroking the skin above the hem of his boxers; the other slicked back his hair, grabbing a handful of it to pull Loqi closer. Loqi’s eyes fluttered closed when Cor pressed a kiss to the corner of his mouth; tender in a way they hadn’t been all night.

“You’re ridiculous,” Cor said warmly against Loqi’s neck, laughing again when the lips pressed to Loqi’s skin made him squirm.

“It’s not ridiculous,” Loqi argued, moving his arms to rest over Cor’s shoulders. “After hating each other for almost ten years, suddenly waking up in your bed after you come back from the dead, having sex, and then telling you how much I like you all seem like reasonable things to overthink.”

“Things change.” Cor said simply. He leaned closer to Loqi, muffling his words as he mouthed at Loqi’s shoulder. “I told you once I don’t say anything unless I mean it, so I’ll say it plainly so you know. I want you. I can’t stop thinking about you. The whole time I fought through Gilgamesh’s trials I did it with the thought of coming back to you and continuing what I started. I was lucky enough to get a second chance to do exactly that.” 

“Oh,” Loqi blinked in surprise before his eyes softened, and he pulled Cor closer, tightening his legs around him and burying his fingers in Cor’s hair, unwilling to let go. Cor’s thoughts had mirrored his own from the night before and it made his heart pound madly in his chest. It seemed too easy, that after all Loqi had done in his life to Cor that the man could just hand him his heart with a few soft words; trusting Loqi to be the man he had the potential to be rather than the man he’d been his whole life.

“Okay,” And in that moment he knew he was Cor’s, knew that everything between them had been building up to this moment and that Loqi would spend whatever life he had left proving to himself and to the world that he was who Cor believed him to be. “Now I know.”

A knock on the door interrupted their embrace, and Cor pulled back after giving Loqi a final searing kiss, his grin playful. 

“You might want to put some jeans on this time.”

…

The next morning, Loqi was sprawled in Cor’s bed well past sunrise; Cor had left early with a kiss and a promise to bring back breakfast and Loqi had no motivation to move from the pile of blankets and the ghost of Cor’s touch lingering on his skin. Loqi dozed, falling in and out of consciousness until noises from the kitchen and the faint smell of coffee roused him hours later. 

Loqi pulled on boxers before joining Cor in the kitchen, smiling at the two mugs already set on the counter.

“It’s done. I discussed your status with Monica and Dave and you’ll be inducted officially among the hunters. You’ll be given the same benefits anyone originally from Lucis would be given.”

“As easy as that? I thought Monica might have a few misgivings.”

“I think most of her misgivings were alleviated when I strolled back into town alive. Beyond that there’s been a lot of positive feedback trickling in from the trail of citizens you impressed along that trip. Not to mention I have a bit of sway around here, and I think you deserve it.”

Loqi gave Cor a shy smile and his thanks, taking a tentative sip of his coffee.

“Don’t thank me, you proved yourself. I trust you to have my back and the rest of the people here will think the same in time. They’ll engrave some dog tags for you and Monica will pass along info and requests for hunts for you to take. You can come and go as you please now.”

It was what Loqi had wanted, freedom to leave and navigate his own path through the end of the world. But a glaring emptiness in his chest told him that was not all he wanted anymore. He set down his mug, hands flat on the table as he looked out the window to the city below.

“And where are you going to be?”

Cor’s fond chuckle told Loqi that he was expecting that question. “Honestly I don’t think anyone is going to let me out of their sight for the next couple of weeks as I recover. Past that I suppose I’ll continue to go where they need me, I’ve always been better in the field than behind a desk anyway.” Cor set down his mug and came up behind Loqi, wrapping his hands around Loqi’s midsection and pulling their bodies flush. Cor’s hands roamed and Loqi lolled his head to rest on Cor’s shoulder, enjoying the soft press of lips to his temple.

“You know your reflexes aren’t what they used to be, you might need someone to watch your back out there.”

Cor’s laugh was soft and warm and it made Loqi’s heart swim in his chest as Cor tightened his arms, holding Loqi close.

“You might have a point. Think there’s a hunter around here that would be willing to accompany me around Lucis?”

Loqi spun around in Cor’s arms, leaning on his toes to kiss Cor’s jaw, fingers crawling up his chest. “With all the danger and excitement you find yourself in?” 

Cor nodded and tilted his head to find Loqi’s lips, and he tasted like coffee and warmth and all the hopes and dreams Loqi had never believed he’d have in his lifetime.

“I think you might find one.” 

…

Two years later and the sun had disappeared completely. Morning now was determined by the constrains of alarm clocks, and Loqi’s had been going off for the past three minutes. He finally turned over, slapping the thing only to realize he was already alone in bed. A rare occurrence as over time Cor had become the one to savor sleeping in, each morning wrapping arms around Loqi and sliding a knee between his thighs, lips at the back of Loqi’s neck as he ignored the alarm. 

Today found Cor already up and he had been for a while judging from the mug of coffee in hand and his state of being fully dressed. 

“Where are you off to today?” Loqi muttered up from his pillow, staring at Cor through the curtain of hair he had been neglecting to cut. Cor took a long drink from his mug and shoved off from where he’d been leaning against the window looking down at the lights of the city.

“Behemoth spotted halfway to Meldacio, Iris is getting a group together and I thought I’d go and give them a hand.”

“Overachiever,” But Loqi was grinning as he swung his feet out of bed and stretched. “You and your little protégé both.” He felt Cor’s eyes on him as he padded over to the dresser to grab a fresh set of clothes, taking his time pulling on the boxers and shirt, knowing he’d never tire of the hungry way Cor stared at him. “Plan on coming back tonight?” 

“Guess that depends on how much trouble that behemoth wants to give me.” At that Loqi stepped up in front of Cor, his fingers reaching out to run along the seams of his jacket up to his collar. 

“Do I need to give you an incentive to return?” Loqi pressed their bodies together, pulling aside Cor’s collar to press kisses to the sliver of skin he could reach. Cor made a sound low in his throat, dipping his head to mouth at Loqi’s ear and whisper to him.

“I’ll always come back to you.”

And the words and soft breath on the curve of his ear made Loqi’s heart stutter, made him tremble as a heady feeling trickled down the back of his neck to curl at the base of his spine. Suddenly the thought of Cor leaving for even a night was unbearable and Loqi tightened his grip, pulling Cor close enough that he could feel his heartbeat against his cheek. Cor lifted his hand to cradle the back of Loqi’s head, his fingers burying themselves in the locks that fell past his shoulders. They stayed like that a moment, Cor smoothing down his hair and Loqi pressing his lips against Cor’s chest over and over. 

Cor disentangled them first, taking a step back and letting his hand slide down Loqi’s shoulder and arm to leave their fingers linked together. Cor’s gaze fell to the wayside and to Loqi’s eyes he looked vaguely unsure. Cor opened his mouth a few times to say something only to furrow his brows and close it again. Loqi felt his pulse quicken, but he’d like to think he’d learned some patience from his years with Cor and said nothing to rush him.

“I need you to do me a favor,” Cor finally said, his voice solemn as he reached into the pocket of his jacket, drawing out a long chain. On the end was Cor’s ring, the dark band with the symbol of the Crownsguard on it that Loqi had never seen him remove. He placed the chain in Loqi’s hand, folding his fingers over it. “Keep this safe for me.”

Loqi’s heart pounded wildly and the soft, vulnerable look in Cor’s blue eyes took his breath away in a shaky exhale. The symbolism of the gesture wasn’t lost on him.

“I will.” 

Loqi’s fingers brushed along the warm metal reverently, memorizing every detail before drawing the chain over his head and slipping the ring inside his collar to rest against his chest. Cor freed his hair and then his thumb and index finger were on Loqi’s chin, tilting his face up so Cor could cover his lips with his own. It started soft, but then Cor’s hand slid down to press against Loqi’s throat and his tongue pressed eagerly past his lips and Loqi was lost. Loqi threw his arms around Cor’s neck and without thinking he jumped up to wrap his thighs around Cor’s waist as well, needing to feel the press of hard muscle and soft skin below his body desperately. Cor barely swayed with Loqi’s added weight, simply hiking up his ass and stumbling the few steps back to the bed.

Then Loqi was under Cor, the older man practically ripping his jacket off in his hurry, his shirt already up over his head and tossed to the floor while Loqi still fumbled with the buckle of Cor’s belt. Cor batted his hands away and a moment later his jeans joined the rest of his clothes on the ground. Cor settled between Loqi’s thighs like he belonged there, his weight familiar and comforting as he ground down against him. Loqi felt the rough slide of Cor’s fingers beneath his shirt as he pushed the fabric up over his chest, his mouth a hot brand against the pale skin stretched over his ribs.

Loqi mumbled Cor’s name, repeating it as Cor kissed trails along his chest, then Loqi’s boxers were a memory, Cor’s fingers wrapping around his length and stroking him slowly.

But Loqi had other plans and he pulled Cor’s hand off and then Loqi flipped them, straddling Cor’s hips and grinding down on the hard line of his cock.

“I want to ride you.” 

“Anything you want, baby.”

And Loqi smiled, leaning over to kiss Cor’s chin and neck and chest, the chain dragging along Cor’s skin as Loqi continued his path down Cor’s body. There were no pretenses this morning, only need, and Loqi skipped his normal soft teasing and went directly to stretching his lips around Cor’s cock. Cor groaned at the sudden inferno of Loqi’s mouth, a hand reaching down to gather a handful of Loqi’s hair and hold it out of the way. It was one of the reasons Loqi was avoiding cutting it, he loved the way Cor would touch it or run his fingers through it or grip it tight and tug on it. Cor’s fingers held tight and Loqi bobbed his head, Cor’s cock sliding in and out of the tight wet heat of his mouth.

A few moments later Loqi heard Cor pull the drawer of the nightstand open and then a vial was pressed against his hand and Loqi smiled around Cor’s cock, knowing what he was asking for. Loqi turned sideways, slicked his fingers and reached around himself, sliding a finger in his hole as he took Cor’s cock as deep into his throat he could. He fingered himself open to the sounds of Cor’s muted gasps and moans and whined around the mouthful of cock when Cor’s empty hand slapped against his ass, his fingers crawling over Loqi’s skin greedily to press against his hole, a finger sliding inside next to Loqi’s. Loqi gasped at the fullness, at Cor’s cock pressing against the back of his throat and their fingers tangled together inside of him. 

Loqi let himself savor the sensation for a few more moments before finally pulling Cor’s cock from his mouth, the need to get fucked too demanding to ignore.

Loqi slid Cor’s hand from him and climbed back up into his lap, balancing on his knees as he sunk down on Cor’s cock, both men letting out a surprised gasp at the sudden change of pace. Cor’s hands trailed down Loqi’s torso until they gripped his hips, rocking slowly into him. And Loqi let him, his head tipped back and his body steeped in the shadows of the night, reveling in the feeling of every single drag of Cor’s length against his insides. It was slow and gentle and Loqi’s heart pounded out of love for Cor. He pulled one of Cor’s hands off his hip, and laced their fingers together, bringing Cor’s hand to his lips to kiss along the ridge of his knuckles.

And then Loqi leaned over and the change of angle had Cor moaning low in his throat, the hand still on Loqi’s hip gripping hard enough to bruise. Loqi brushed Cor’s lips gently with his own before trailing a line of kisses up the stubble of his jaw and stopping at the soft place below his ear. Loqi pulled the hand still tangled with his own to his chest, pressing Cor’s palm to his heart, the ring a hard lump beneath it.

“Does this mean I belong to you now?”

Cor’s body tensed below Loqi for a moment before strong arms wrapped around him, holding him almost too tight before whispering back.

“I want it to mean that.”

Loqi let out a breath he didn’t know he’d been holding. “Then luckily for you I’ve always belonged to you.” 

And then Loqi leaned back up, tilting his hips and fucking himself harder on Cor’s cock, his fingernails digging crescent-moons into the skin of Cor’s chest and his thighs shaking with the strain. Cor bit down on a gasp, his hands sliding down the knobs of Loqi’s spine to grip his ass as his hips snapped up to meet Loqi’s frantic pace. Cor’s hand slid over the soft skin of Loqi’s thigh and closed around Loqi’s cock and it was all over from there, Loqi coming with a strangled whine and spilling across the flat plane of Cor’s stomach. Loqi’s whole body tightened with his release and Cor was so far gone it put him over the edge, his cock buried deep in Loqi as he came. 

A moment later Cor tugged on the chain, pulling Loqi down to kiss him, and they rolled onto their sides, kissing and touching and laughing and Loqi thought that there was no one else in the world he could ever love like this, that he and Cor belonged to each other now, that somehow fate had brought them together time and time again until they’d finally gotten it right.

Cor reached out to tuck a strand of hair behind Loqi’s ear, his smile soft and warm, and Loqi wondered if a heart could ever be so full of love it could burst. 

…

Sometime later Cor left; he redressed, smoothing the wrinkles from his jacket as he kneeled on the bed, pressing Loqi into the pillows with a kiss and a promise to be home that night. He gave a last tug on a lock of Loqi’s hair and was out the door, leaving Loqi alone in the apartment.

Loqi let himself lounge, it was still technically early, and although the demons waited for no man these days, he felt the benefit of reveling a few more minutes in bed would outweigh the negatives. It felt silly but five minutes out the door and he already missed Cor, missed his touch and his voice and his presence.

It had struck him like a freight train when Loqi realized he loved Cor so much. He had fallen so quickly, so completely, that sometimes it overwhelmed him and it hurt to breathe. He had never felt something so all-encompassing with another person, the deep, simple need he had for Cor leaving him achingly vulnerable. He placed his hand over the ring lying heavy against his heart and Loqi wondered if maybe Cor had loved him for far longer than he had realized, too.

Loqi slowly dragged himself up and dressed, pouring himself a cup of coffee and sitting down at the table, his fingers idly tracing the lip of the mug. The apartment was quiet beyond the continuous ticking of the clock on the wall and it was entirely dark besides the hall light and what streetlight filtered in through the windows.

Loqi felt at home here, an ease he hadn’t felt since before his days in the academy. Sometimes he still couldn’t believe where his life had led him; how his rise through the ranks to Commander, once his singular goal and purpose, had become a black mark on his past. How now his point of pride was protecting those in the city from demons, the job dangerous and thankless, but giving him a satisfaction he had never known in his old life. Loqi found he now craved the simplicity and routine of this existence; craved the satisfaction of a long day of hard work that ended with crawling into a warm bed next to Cor.

Loqi’s coffee by now was cold and bitter but he stood and drained it, softly setting the mug in the sink. He plucked his jacket from the back of his chair and slung it over his shoulders, then pulled up his hair to tie it out of the way. He tugged on his boots, stamping down his heels so he wouldn’t need to undo the laces. He gave his pack of supplies a brief check and tested the edge of his lance before strapping it against his back. Loqi gave one last look around the apartment, but it was dark and quiet and still, empty without Cor. He had a way of filling the space with his smile and laughter and presence that made Loqi count down the hours until he could return and surround himself with the man. Loqi’s fingers seemed to reach up and touch the chain around his neck of their own accord, the weight of it as solid as a promise.

Even though every other citizen and hunter and refugee still held out hope that the Prince would return and end the darkness, Loqi instead relied only on what was in front of him; relied on his own strength, his own resourcefulness… but mostly he relied on Cor. Even without the hope of daylight returning he could get up and face the endless night as long as he had Cor to return home to.

The steady ticking of the clock reminded Loqi that time was wasting. There were demons to kill and people to protect, and after all that was done there would be Cor. 

Loqi opened the front door, took a deep breath of city air, and stepped out into the darkness.


End file.
